Fate Doubtful Origin
by CleverPervertedPriest
Summary: The Greater Grail. Stolen away by an unknown party, it resurfaces in Romania many years later. As all sides flock to covet such wondrous treasure, something went dreadfully wrong. The Servants they summoned are not as they are. Not as they seem. Not as expected. Ruin has come to Romania.
1. Tutorial

**I do not own Fate/Apocrypha nor any other Servants depicted here.**

Tutorial

Moonlight the church in its serene light. The priest looked up to the sky, taking in its beauty. In his heart, he was tense. Counting the days to the beginning of the Great Holy Grail War. Most of the Servants of the Red Faction have been summoned. Still, something was off in this War. As of yet, the Servants that his side received were... strange. Assassin was as he expected. The others, however...

Meeting them was quite colorful indeed.

* * *

"Wait, what the hell are you?" exclaimed Berzinsky the moment the smoke cleared around the array.

A little girl in a purple dress with matching shoes and top hat. A big red ribbon tied into a bow adorned the front of her dress. Her face looked human, but her arms were made of metal, with three metal feathers reminiscent of a peacock's sticking out of them at intervals. She also wore white gloves to cover her hands.

"Hey! Nice to meetcha," she exclaimed in a metallic, high pitched voice as she pulled a pre-lit cigar from out of nowhere and sucked on it, "They put me in Archer, so call me Archer. Is this gig like some kind of spy film where they give us secret code names and the like? Sounds boring to me."

The Silver Lizard's mouth was agape and speechless. Shirou Kotomine echoed his disbelief inwardly.

"So, do ya have a T.V. around here?"

* * *

"What... what is this?" asked Rum, shocked at what had appeared in the circle.

A tall person clad in black robes. It looked old with intricate decorations. Gloves and upper arms had metal coverings that looked like large scales. If one squinted, you could see a dragon's head overlooking the shoulders. This person had on a mask that was most peculiar, tentacular looking appendages over the top and the bottom.

"I have been called. I am of the Caster class," he announced sternly.

"I see. I am your Master. You will be working with him," she told him as she motioned to Shirou beside her.

The Servant turned his head towards the priest and growled "I see. Thus, our contract is complete. I hope this War does not disappoint."

* * *

"Deimlet, I do not think these are the Servants we summoned," stated Cabik as he looked them over.

"Indeed," concurred his brother. Turning to Shirou, he asked, "Has this happened before?"

"Twice, unfortunately," admitted the white-haired priest with a sigh, "Both times, relative unknowns."

"I see," the older brother noted as he turned back to their Servants.

Deimlet got a female Servant. Her white dress was provocative and her body left little to the imagination. She also had large cloak over her shoulders and a black bow in her hair. Two things stood out. Her metal left arm and the white flower growing out of her right eye. She stood up proudly and looked to him. "I presume you are the one that summoned me?" she asked.

"Yes," he replied.

"Very well, I am Rider of the Red Faction. May the cooperation proceed smoothly," she stated calmly.

"What is your class, Servant?" demanded Cabik, "Answer me!"

His brother, however, had a problem. His Servant did not speak. Even then, the summon had stood there without a word. It was fully armored from head to toe. Futuristic would be the most suitable word to describe it. The blue opaque glass of his helm blurred out his face quite well, so it was anyone's guess as to who the Servant was thinking. However, before Cabik could demand any further, the Servant grabbed his throat and brought him close to the faceplate. One could actually feel the anger rolling off him like waves.

"I think you have a Berserker class Servant," stated Shirou as he calmly schooled his face. "If you would please release your Master, Berserker?"

The Servant turned his head to the priest and paused. A few seconds later, he dropped the other half of the Gum brothers and walked off, shifting into spirit mode.

"I suggest we do not provoke him again," stated the priest, the other two nodding hurriedly.

Rider snorted and said, "Well, I certainly hope you two show a little more backbone later on. It would be a shame to terminate our contract so early."

"Why you-"

"Now, now. Please do not fight here. Save it for the Black Faction," pleaded the priest as he tried to placate both sides.

* * *

"Priest, this is not what I had summoned," von Sembren said sternly, a frown on his face.

"Of course it would happen again," Shirou groaned as he pinched the bridge of his nose. This was the fifth time now.

This Servant was certainly not of Indian origin. She had fair skin, green eyes, and shoulder-length, silver-blonde hair, for one. Her armor consisted of red and black leather armor that had a scale-like arrangement of leather plates. Various other leather pieces to her armor gave the appearance of wings behind her. The long white cape coming from her waist would give the same image.

"Well, I certainly didn't expect to be called here like this," she stated as she looked over herself, "I have been placed in Lancer for this War. I take it you are the one who called?"

"That is right," affirmed the Clocktower instructor.

"Alright then. The contract is set. So... is everyone here yet or not?"

"We are still missing a Saber," stated the priest.

"I see... well, I'll be off exploring then. You know where to find me."

* * *

Shirou Kotomine sighed as he turned around to reenter the church. So far, five out of six Servants were different. He could only hope that whoever summoned Saber didn't get a random Servant either. Then again, to expect this to be a normal War was thrown out of the window the moment the two factions were formed. And now... it has become a lot more complicated. Was this the Grail's way of evening out the playing field?

_You sound vexed, Master._

"I am. Not even I could have foreseen such a thing, Assassin," he muttered softly.

_Perhaps. However, come to think of it, wouldn't the Black Faction be plagued with a similar thing?_

To that, the priest chuckled a little. Her words rang true enough. He could only imagine what utter chaos would be happening if this occurred to them as well.

It was a comforting thought.

* * *

Night had fallen on the city of Trifas. Darnic peered out of the window, dressed smartly in the white military-looking suit, nursing a cup of wine in hand. A knock on the door shook him out of his reverie.

"Enter," he said loudly as he turned around. An old, wizened gentleman stepped through and closed the door. Clothes in a style of 17th century England, his long red overcoat highlighting the greys and whites of the rest of his clothing.

"Ah, Caster. Glad to see you this evening," the magus greeted as he motioned to the chessboard on the table, "Do you play?"

"I dabbled in it from time to time," the Servant graciously replied in a grandfatherly manner as he stroked his grey beard, "I hope you would accept me as your opponent."

"By all means, Caster," he said as he motioned to the other seat, "Care for a drink?"

"I do not mind," the Servant of Magecraft stated as he sat down and then they began the motions of a game. A skeleton flickered into being behind him and moved to the side to get a serving tray, while Darnic had placed his on a tray held by a homunculus maid.

Minutes ticked by as move after chess move was played. Suddenly, Darnic asked, "Have you ever felt that everything so far was only for this moment?"

Intrigued, Caster responded, "Once, I believe. Why do you ask, Darnic?"

This prompted the former to explain as they continued their game, "It was prophecized by the Clock Tower that my bloodline would die off. Bound for glory I was, but those foolish words made me an outcast. I died once as a Magus. But I joined the Fuyuki Grail War and gained the Greater Grail for myself. In the sixty years since then, I have been preparing in Trifas. This makes me different from those who fought in the previous Holy Grail Wars."

"Hmm, I see. So summoning me, a Caster, was part of those preparations too," the Servant surmised.

"Indeed. While you were not the intended Servant, you have managed to astound. You skeletal minions would seem to rival golems," the magus praised with a smile.

"It is but a trivial thing for me. However, the golems that my Master crafts are grand undertakings in their own right," the latter applauded.

"Ah, that much is true. Still, utilizing your powers in a usual Holy Grail War would be difficult. Here and now though, the situation is different," he continued.

'Using homunculus to provide magical energy instead of your own was a wise choice," the Servant praised again.

"First Class Servants require immense amounts of magical energy. It's only logical to offload the burden onto someone else," Darnic reasoned.

"And thus we can use our Noble Phantasms freely to our heart's content," the Servant chuckled, "How fortuitous."

"I would not declare our victory so soon," he cautioned, "But we could not have been more prepared than this. Every Magus seeks True Magic from the Root, and I will be the one to reach it." And with a firm hand, he placed the final chess piece. "Checkmate."

"Well done, Darnic," Caster congratulated, "I concede."

A knock on the door sounded and opened to reveal Roche Frain, also in the white uniform. "Darnic, Caster, the ceremony preparations are complete," he announced respectfully.

The Yggdmillenia leader nodded. He turned to the Servant and gestured to the door, politely asking, "Shall we?"

Exchanging more nods, they get up from their seats and leave the room, Darnic leading the way. As they made their way to the grand hall, Roche asked his Servant, "Caster, the commissions have arrived for you."

"Have they?" the Servant exclaimed in gentle surprise, "Hmm, so it seems I can begin in earnest."

"If you do not mind me asking," queried the young Master with boundless curiosity, "What are you going to do with those stone carvings? Are you going to summon more powerful undead?"

The old man chuckled and muttered out, "Oh, no. Only a Servant can kill a Servant. My summons, ultimately, serve to wear them out and to hold back whatever Masters and followers they have.

The great doors swung open upon their arrival at the hall, where four others stood. They headed to the front of the room, where a lone white throne was. Seated on it was a Servant of royal stature. Rich garments of leather and cloth. A chiseled and handsome face scanning the room in a calm and collected manner.

Darnic bowed and stated, "Everything is ready, my liege." Getting a nod from the monarch, he stood up straight and turned to face the for future Masters.

"Yggdmillenia. We can begin."

**Commentary:-**

**Hello everyone. I'm back. Yes, I've decided to delve into Apocrypha. Admittedly, I have not watched the anime, nor have I access to the novels. I do have the Internet though. So far, the wiki is good enough. And yes, I will be watching the anime, if not to see how I can bring about corruption to the storyline and all. But, what do we have today, you might ask? Pretty much revealing more than half of the Servants in contention of the Grail. And someone once said that half the fun is guessing who the replacements are. So here I present to you the Servants of the Red Faction. Guess away! Oh, but oh, the headache that Kotomine is having. Surprisingly, Darnic is way more collected this time, even playing chess with Caster of Black. Next chapter, is the summoning of the rest of the Black Faction. I present to you...**

**Fate/Doubtful Origin**

**Please read and review, would you kindly?**


	2. Addendum

**I do not own Fate/Apocrypha nor any other Servants depicted here.**

Addendum

**Let silver and steel be the essence.**  
**Let stone and the archduke of contracts be the foundation.**  
**Let black be the color I pay tribute to.**  
**Let rise a wall against the wind that shall fall.**  
**Let the four cardinal gates close.**  
**Let the three-forked road from the crown reaching unto the Kingdom rotate.**

**Let it be declared now;**  
**your flesh shall serve under me, and my fate shall be with your sword.**  
**Submit to the beckoning of the Holy Grail.**  
**Answer if you would submit to this will and this truth.**

**An oath shall be sworn here.**  
**I shall attain all virtues of all of Heaven;**  
**I shall have dominion over all evils of all of Hell.**

**From the Seventh Heaven, attended to by three great words of power,**  
**come forth from the ring of restraint, protector of the holy balance!**

The chant echoed through the grand hall as the chosen Masters spoke the words for summoning. One even added in a few extra lines for a specific class.

**Yet you shall serve with your eyes clouded by chaos.**  
**For you would be one caged in madness.**  
**I shall wield your chains.**

Smoke and bright lights expelled forth onto the summoning circles as vessels were crafted and copies installed. When it was over, when the smoke cleared, four more Servants were brought into the world. All four knelt on one knee and declared, "Your summons have been answered. I am a Servant of Black, and my fate is one with Yggdmillenia. My sword is your sword."

Darnic smoothly stepped forward to face Lancer and addressed him, "My liege, these are the Servants our Masters of Black have summoned. They are yours to command."

The seated Servant nodded and rose from the throne. "Champions. Servants," he spoke with pride, "You have responded to the summons seeking the Grail. But, another faction rises to opposes. We must defeat them and rise to victory as the Black Faction!" He turned to look at his Master, who nodded and stepped forward.

"As the summonings conclude, we Yggdmillenia have started walking the path of war from which we cannot turn back!" the magus announced passionately, "Eternal glory comes to those who attain victory! Fear not! We already control the legendary vessel, the Greater Grail!"

"Hah! That! Sounds like good news to me," spoke up one of the newly summoned Servants. He was extremely muscular and quite tall. Dressed smartly in a black business suit with a gold-yellow tie, he pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose and continued, "Already halfway there. We'll just have to keep the other faction away from it."

"If that is so, then allow me to assist in making this place defensible," offered up another. He wore armor which looked extremely futuristic and kept his entire face covered. Probably an accomplished military man, judging by the amount of decoration on it. His voice was distorted by the breathing apparatus, the red lenses of his eyes glowing as he continued with, "I request the map of the area as well as a tally of available forces."

"Oh my, it seems those two are quite lively," the sole female Servant there exclaimed with a smile, tilting her head as she held a hand to her cheek. She was armored but it seemed a little light, as if for ease of movement. A pair of draconic wings rose from the side of her gorget, framing her long flowing red hair that was kept in place by a cloth hairband.

"Eh, can't say I blame them," interjected the last Servant as he leaned to the side and crossed his arms. His white hair was in a faux-hawk style and wore a dark blue hooded jacket, a tattered dark crimson shirt, black pants, and military-style combat boots. He added, "One's an emo soldier boy and the other's a 'roided up jock. You can't expect anything else."

"Hmph, a barking dog? Is this what I have to work with?" sneered the army Servant, "You should be put down for daring to mock me."

On the other hand, the Servant in the suit laughed and said, "I think I like this one already. Tell me, son, do you have the power to back up those fighting words of yours?"

"Wanna find out?" the last Servant taunted with a smirk as a sword materialized on his back.

"Enough!" Lancer shouted as slammed the butt of his spear on the floor. An intricately made weapon that seemed to have multiple moving parts for the spearhead. "We are meant to work together to stop a common enemy. We should not dissolve into fighting amongst ourselves," he reprimanded them fiercely. After a moment of glaring at them, he continued at a more calmer tone, "Now, if you would please state your classes to make things easier for us."

The military Servant then stood at attention with a salute, an open left palm touching his shoulder thumb first, "I am Archer. I apologize for my outburst, my lord."

The former nodded and replied, "At ease, Archer. Apology accepted."

"I have been placed in Berserker," said the muscular Servant politely as he pushed his glasses up and stepped forward to offer a hand, "Pleased to make your acquaintance."

Lancer grasped the open palm in a warrior's handshake and, "It is good to meet you as well, Berserker."

The woman curtsied and stated, "I am Rider, milord." He returned the gesture with a bow.

"I guess I can work with this... I'm Saber," drawled out the young man as he extended his own hand.

Lancer strode forward and grasped it firmly, saying, "Good to meet you, Saber." With that, he went to the front of the room and turned to face them. "Servants of the Black Faction," he addressed them, "I am Lancer. The other Servant beside me is Caster. While we await the return of one more with good news on Assassin's summoning, I ask of you that we all come together as one to defeat the Red Faction! Let us swear to bring victory!"

"YES!" shouted the other four.

* * *

The room was dark, only illuminated by all manner of lighting outside the apartment. A woman lay on the floor, bleeding out of her stomach and sobbing uncontrollably. The chant had been spoken amidst her cries and now the smoke was slowly coalescing into shape. The magus watched eagerly as he awaited the Assassin he summoned. However, instead of the supposed English serial killer, he found someone different. The thin Servant was in a tight bodysuit made of unknown material and colored in blacks and greys. His head was fully enclosed in his helmet, his faceplate an extremely smooth dome cover. His belt had two pouches on the side of his hips.

"What the- who are you?" exclaimed Hyouma Sagara. Was all his preparation all for naught?

The Servant turned his faceplate towards him and said nothing. Something flickered in front of it and a series of numbers and letters appeared.

**4SS4SS1N**

He stood there dumbfounded for a moment before being able to piece together what the Servant was trying to say. "Assassin? So... I did succeed," he said with a grin.

"It is very odd./ I do not feel tied to you./ Are there two Masters?" the Servant suddenly said in a slightly distorted voice.

"Eh, so you do speak. But what..." the magus started before the words itself hit him. "Damn it all," he shouted with a frustrated tone as he glared at the prostitute, "I had a feeling I should have killed you off entirely. I suppose I have to finish the ritual and the job."

"Finishing the job?/ Allow me to assist you./ Hate unfinished work."

"...Fine, I guess. You can stop her from struggling while I transfer the link properly this time," he ordered while noticing the whimpering woman trying to crawl away.

**:-)**

* * *

The next morning, Caules was surprised to find his Servant in the dining room having breakfast. An all-American style breakfast with a pot of coffee on the side. He ate while reading the day's newspapers.

"Rise and shine, son," Berserker greeted as he motioned to the seat in front of him, "Have a seat. Fill your belly and get ready for the day."

"I thought Servants didn't need food," he stated as he sat down.

"True. But that doesn't mean you should start the day without it," the Servant replied in a friendly manner, "Besides, I want to go on some sight-seeing later. A Servant needs to know of future battlefields after all."

"Another thing. You are a lucid Berserker," he pressed further as a homunculus maid presented him with a more simpler breakfast.

"Not all in this class are batshit crazy, son," said the former as he gestured with his fork, "Some of them just have radical ideas and have the balls and strength to act on them."

The rest of breakfast was finished in silence as Caules thought over what his Servant proclaimed.

* * *

"Pull."

A homunculus maid triggered the trap, launching the clay pigeon. Archer tracked it for a moment before shooting to kill.

"Pull."

The process was repeated again. Fiore calmly wheeled up to him with a question on her mind. As if knowing she was already there, her Servant queried, "Yes? Pull."

"I am surprised that you would engage in this sport, Archer," she stated as the shotgun belched out its payload, destroying another pigeon.

He paused to turn and explain as he lowered the gun, "A soldier must keep his skills sharp. I am no exception. Additionally, why waste power on doing this with my Noble Phantasm while I have more cheaper alternates to do so?" Then, he turned back to face the field and ordered, "Pull."

Fiore sighed and went back to the tower. At the door, some outdoor furniture was set up and it seemed like Rider and a very reluctant Celenike were sharing a pot of tea. "Good morning," she greeted as she wheeled over, putting aside the feeling of blood she could feel from the other Master, "Discussions with your Servant, Celenike?"

With a huff, the magus replied, "As grateful as I am to be selected as a Master, I sorely wish I got the Servant I wanted. Disappointment does not begin to describe it."

"My apologies, Master," offered up the Servant as she received a cup of tea from another maid, "I truly am."

"What use is it? I was quite looking forward to meeting the other one. I wonder what type of man was he..." she muttered as she looked away. She seemed to drift off in her mind, presumably thinking of what to do to her desired Servant. No doubt something... undesirable, if Fiore remembered her facts correctly about Celenike's family line.

"Hmm, I think I do understand your loneliness," commented Rider as she stirred her tea, "I suppose it would be difficult to find a special someone in your line of work."

"Huh?" uttered both Masters in surprise.

"Then again, love can bloom in the most unlikely places," the Servant said as she cupped her cheek with her free hand, "In fact, I met my beloved during a war."

Celenike started to chuckle, sputtering, "You think... I am talking about... getting a boyfriend..." She sighed and said, "Well, I suppose we can go with that."

Disturbing didn't describe half of it. Fiore didn't know what bothered her more; the fact that Rider was off the mark or that her Master's dark vibe suddenly increased. Looks like another homunculus is going to go missing... again. And why was she fine with the taint of blood coming off her Master? Not even perfume could cover it up.

* * *

"Servant, materialize. I wish to speak with you."

Gordes took a sip and set the glass of wine on the table. Looking around and still seeing empty air, he shouted, "Servant! I order you to materialize!"

Saber did so, with a very bored look on his face. "Why the hell are you shouting so much? It's too early in the morning for this."

"Why didn't you appear when I ordered you!? You are my Servant and I expected you to follow my orders!" he exploded on him.

"Yeesh, fine. I'm here, fat ass, now what do you want?" the Servant shot back as he crossed his arms.

"I will not tolerate this, Servant! You are just a glorified familiar!" Gordes continued his tirade as he stood up from his seat, "You! Will! Obey!"

"Geez, not just a fat ass but a hardass as well," he grumbled as he suddenly hauled the Master up by the collar and said, "Alright, asshat, if this is your idea of reaching an understanding with a Servant, you've got another thing coming. I don't care if you're the one keeping me here, this is how we're gonna do things. Out of a fight, you can say whatever you want. I'll go along with it 'if' it suits me. But in a fight, I call the shots. You just find a safe place to hide until it blows over. Got it?"

The magus hastily nodded. He was fine with it. All he wanted to do was talk about what not to say to the others and discuss their wishes. And maybe the Servant's identity. This was a lot more than he bargained for. He was suddenly let go and he fell back into his seat. He smoothed down his clothes and said, "Well, glad we could come to an agreement. Oh, and, if you don't mind... may I know your identity?"

Saber stared at him for a moment, shrugged and replied, "I guess it couldn't hurt..."

* * *

Lancer stood there staring out the window. The scenery was beautiful enough. Reminded him of home. But overall, he was restless. He disliked waiting for the enemy. He disliked having to react to their movements. If the enemy was familiar to him, he would be fine. He would anticipate their movements and counter accordingly. This time, he didn't know a thing. This is why he hoped that whomever that was summoning Assassin for the Black Faction would get someone that could help with information gathering. At least someone who knows what to do about it.

"Are you worried, my liege?" asked Darnic as he stood behind him.

"Indeed, I am," the Servant admitted as he turned away from the window to take a seat, "We know so little of the Red Faction. I would feel better if I knew more about our enemies." After some thought, he asked, "How soon is the Master of Assassin going to arrive?"

"Soon, my liege, soon," assured the magus as he poured him a glass of wine, "Hyouma, while being like a rat, is a resourceful magus. I am sure he is already on the way back to the city, Assassin with him."

"I certainly hope so," stated Lancer as he swirled the glass a little before drinking the wine.

* * *

Sagara grumbled as he walked down the road. After that debacle last night, he didn't have enough cash to hire a ride to Trifas. So there he was in Sighisoara, wandering around until he can come up with a way to get there.

"_I am bored as hell._/ _I would like to kill something._/ _Can we friggin' go_?"

It also didn't help that his Servant liked to wax poetic about his circumstance. It was then he came across a blonde girl in some student uniform talking to some guy that looked like a farmer. He walked past them, preoccupied with his thoughts, pieces of their conversation sounding past him about a trip out of the city. It then occurred to him that maybe he should take the same approach and maybe thumb a ride back to Trifas. That meant walking out of the city and...

"Excuse me, sir?" asked someone behind him, feeling a tap on his shoulder, "Are you in distress?" He turned around to find that same girl facing him, that other man moving towards a green pickup truck.

"Hmm?" he sounded in surprise and annoyance, "Yeah, I have some troubles. What's your problem?"

"_That girl has power_./ _She might be an enemy_./ _Can I kill her now_?"

He stiffened upon hearing his Servant's words. He looked past her and saw that the man was sufficiently far away. "Hmm... another Master?" he growled out, "You know we aren't supposed to fight right now."

"Servant Ruler," she corrected, "I am here to mediate, not to take part. I repeat, are you in distress? The farmer said he is heading to Trifas."

He stared at her for a moment, wondering if she was lying to him. Warily, he shrugged his shoulders, not wanting to look the gift horse in the mouth, "I suppose. Yes, I'll join you."

She just smiled and turned to walk to the truck. As he followed after her, he asked mentally, "_What in the world is the Ruler class_?"

"_As she has stated_./ _A wishless Servant brought forth_./ _Here to judge the War_."

A Servant without a wish? Hmm, he could deal with that. Not to mention that he was able to catch a ride to Trifas. That was something.

* * *

Caster hurried along one of the many hallways in the castle. All the Servants were called by Lancer to the great hall for some reason or another. It was quite a bother.

"_Then again, I suppose the carvings can wait_," he intoned to himself as he opened the double doors to the room. All the Servants and their Masters were present, including his own. What a talented boy. His golems were quite intriguing and may prove to be of use to himself later on if he should survive this. "My apologies for my lateness. Have I missed anything?" he asked gently as he took his place next to Roche.

"Accepted. Please, Caster, look at what is being displayed," implored Lancer as everyone was busy watching was happening on the projection that was formed, angled from the ceiling.

Intruders. How daring. One seemed to be a Master, the other a Servant. One used firearms and bombs, the other was clad in armor and used a sword. How amusing. It somehow reminded him of his descendant's hirelings. Then again, the crusader wasn't as reckless, nor the highwayman so explosives inclined. Still, the first volley had been fired and it was up to the Black Faction to respond. And how?

"That must be Saber. He seems strong," stated Lancer as the skirmish ended. He then asked their faction's Servant, "Saber, should you two clash, can you win?"

"If that's all he can do? Yeah, I can win," the Servant of the Sword replied. To Caster, it sounded a little arrogant.

"Truly? Remind yourself that overconfidence is a slow and insidious killer," he advised the younger man.

"It ain't overconfidence if it's true," was the cheeky reply.

"Enough. No more arguments," warned Lancer as he fell into thought. Glancing over to him, the Servant of the Spear asked, "Caster, why didn't your summons respond to this intrusion?"

"To keep it a secret," he explained with some confidence of his own, "For now, they only know the existence of homunculi guards and golems. They know nothing of my undead and it shall remain so until they come in force. By then, it would be too late for them to plan for this. As I have explained to young Roche before, they are merely cannon fodder. To slow down the Servants and their Masters. Who knows? We may be lucky enough to take out a Master or two should they be the type like tonight's visitors."

"Well said, Caster," said Lancer, giving his support. Addressing the rest, "I think this is enough excitement for the night. We should let our Masters rest as the enemy may appear at our doorstep tomorrow. Let us adjourn."

Muttering their agreements, the other Servant's shifted to spirit mode. As the others filed out, Darnic pulled aside Saber's Master and said, "Gordes. Lancer and I have a mission for you."

* * *

"I have been waiting for you," said Shirou as he got up from his kneeling position.

"Well, my Master said you were needing my help," replied Lancer as she stepped out of the shadows.

"Yes. Right now, Servant Ruler is moving towards Trifas," he nodded as he began to explain, "For all of us, he is a disturbance. He must be destroyed immediately."

"Understood. I shall leave immediately," accepted Lancer as she shifted to her spirit form.

**Commentary:-**

**Hello everyone. Welcome back to the next chapter of Doubtful Origin. We have five new Servants for you to look over. Previously, we had a look at the Servants of the Red Faction as well as Lancer of Black and Caster of Black. I hereby confirm the identities of Archer, Rider, and Berserker of Red. Were Lancer and Caster too vague? Hmm, I shall try to give a better implication in later chapters. For now, we have the rest of the Black Faction Servants as well as what happened the next day. If you want to ask as to why Saber of Red is not featured except in reference... Sisigou got the Servant he summoned. Care to take a gander as to the identities of the Servants of the Black Faction? Try the other two as well. ****Please, all are welcome to try as many times as you want.**

**Please read and review, would you kindly?**


	3. Wayside

**I do not own Fate/Apocrypha nor any other Servants depicted here.**

Wayside

Rider was walking down the hall after having left her Master's room. She was a little troubled when she realized that her Master had her own... personal dungeon next door... and she had a male homunculus in it... already tied down. Even a Servant could have a shudder run down her spine.

"Perhaps I should go out into the open country to talk to Minerva for a while," she muttered as she turned the corner, "I would be good to see her again."

And then she stopped in her tracks. Right in front of her was a semi-naked male homunculus sprawled over the floor. He was out of breath and he looked like he had just gotten out of the shower. Her motherly instincts took over and she ran over to look him over.

"Oh my. Are you alright?" she asked with concern as she turned him over and held him up in a sitting position.

"Help... me..." he whispered out, his throat cracking as if he hadn't drunk anything all day. He was also crying, his body shaking as if in pain.

"And you will have it," she told him as she picked him up carefully and started to head for her room. On the way, she encountered two other homunculi, who seemed to be in a hurry.

"Rider," said one, "A homunculus has escaped confinement. Have you seen anything suspicious?"

"I am afraid not," she said with a smile.

"Pardon us," he said as the both of them bowed before hurrying past her.

"I hope you find the one you are looking for," she wished them as they went by. As they turned around the corner, she sighed and muttered as she looked at the one she was carrying, "Hmm, so you have escaped? I wonder why... hmm, you did ask for help... but where do I go to treat you?"

"What is going on here?" someone grumbled in front of her. She looked up and caught sight of Berserker staring at the homunculus.

"Oh... ah... I am in need of assistance..." she stated sheepishly, "He came to me like this and I haven't the faintest idea on how to help him."

He stared sternly at the both of them, his brow furrowing as he thought this over. Eventually, he said as he turned around to move, "You better bring him to my room. I have a way of treating him."

"What would that be, Berserker?" she asked as she followed after.

"Nanomachines. The future of humanity."

* * *

"How can a homunculus escape a tank on its own?" Roche asked as he picked up a piece of broken glass to inspect it.

"Such things are not impossible," Caster stroked his beard while in thought, "Improbably to be sure, never impossible." His eyes slowly followed to where the trail of water led up to the stone steps.

"Well, he hasn't made it outside. The barrier would've reacted," the young Master surmised as he continued to inspect the broken container.

"So he is still here..." the Servant muttered. Turning to the other, he asked, "Are you still intent of capturing him? Using him to make another golem?"

"Maybe... to be honest, it doesn't sit well with me to have an aberration such as this running around," Roche confessed as he ceased his observations and turned to him.

"The concern of a creator, hmm?" Caster hummed out in response as he moved to walk away, "I suppose I can see why. Do as you will. His escape does not concern me the slightest."

"Sorry to disturb you," the magus apologized.

"It is fine. It is your right to call for help when oddities such as this happened in your own workshop," he replied loudly as he continued walking, "I would have done the same thing, trying to control the result of a dangerous experiment."

He blotted out the boy's appreciation as he made his way up the stairs. Such things were beneath him. He had much more important things to do. To search his tenebrous mind for more forgotten secrets and wonders. More terrible secrets. Things that will consume the mind. To bring insight into the great depths of the true world. The Heart needs more blood to be spilled.

It shall have it.

* * *

Berserker lifted his hand off the homunculus' chest. A black mark slowly receded into the center and vanished. The Servant smirked as he turned to Rider, "Done. They should be looking after and if possible, speed up his recovery. From what I can see, the kid's probably tired out after escaping."

"It seems I am in your debt, Berserker," she thanked him with a smile as she looked up from her seat beside the bed.

"All I can do to help," he replied as he looked back to the artificial human, "To think this thing mustered enough strength to even try and bust out of here. Color me impressed. Too bad he was only able to get this far." Turning back to her, he asked, "You know either Caster or his Master will be looking for him, right? What will you do then?"

"I will try and help him," she said without a second thought, "The poor thing looks so thin and starved. I also want to know if this was related to his escape."

He grunted and moved to sit down on the opposite chair. "Well, now that I have donated some of my strength to him, I would say I have a vested interest in his well-being," he stated as he pushed his glasses up, "If anything, I'd like to see how he would fare after his recovery."

"I apologize for dragging you into this," she started again but she was cut off.

"Are you kidding me? The fact he was able to escape from that kid and Caster by himself shows his determination," he retorted, "I happen to like seeing people taking their destiny into their own hands. This kid has the guts but lacked the strength. I want to see how far he goes with strength. If he goes far, all well and good. If not, well, too bad for him. He just wasn't good enough to use it and he fell like the pansy he is."

"That... is rather harsh," she said as the smile faded away, giving way to concern.

"Heh. That's how I lived. It's how I died. Deal with it," he stated as he got up. As he moved to the door to leave, he requested, "Keep the door closed. Don't want anyone snooping around."

"Alright," she agreed as he closed the door. Turning back to the unconscious homunculus, she wondered, "I hope you recover soon, young one."

* * *

The truck went speedily down the road, moving ever closer to Trifas. The back of the truck only heard the whistling of moving air as Ruler and Sagara kept to themselves throughout the entire journey. Strangely enough, even Assassin was quiet. Not even a hint of a haiku directed at the sole Master there.

Suddenly, the Servant moved to lean over to the side and told the driver, "Sir. You can stop. I shall get off here."

He replied in surprise, "How can I leave a young girl alone on the road at night?"

"I beg of you," she ordered, her eyes glowing slightly for a few seconds.

The driver complied and stopped the truck. The curious magus followed after the girl, who took her bag of clothes and hopped off the back of the truck. As it made a U-turn and headed back to Sighisoara, he asked, "What's going on?"

As she watched the truck drive off into the darkness, she replied, "I sensed a Servant as we came in close. I sent him back as to not endanger him."

"What a kind Servant you are, Ruler."

The two turned around and looked up to the voice. Someone was standing on the overhead road sign, shouldering a lance.

"Kind of sad really... but I'm going to have to end you now," the Servant declared before jumping off the sign and hurtling towards them, lance directed at Ruler.

Said Servant was about to push Sagara out of the way and summon her armor when Assassin materialized and shot at Lancer with a pistol. The Servant of the Lance swerved out of the way and landed on her feet.

"Now that wasn't really nice," she teased as she stood there defensively, "Mind introducing yourself?"

The lights appeared on his face-plate.

**4SS4SS1N**

"Let's duel, you and I./ So we can compare weapons./ And know who is more skilled," he challenged as he dismissed the pistol and summoned a katana, moving off to the side and settling into a stance.

"I am Lancer of Red and..." she trailed off after looking at the display, "I have no idea what's on your face."

**D:**

With an exasperated sigh, Sagara called out, "He is Assassin of Black and he likes poetry for some reason."

"Assassin? Is that all?" the former asked as she stared at the opposing Servant, "Alright, I'll make this quick and then take out Ruler." With that, she lunged forward, her speed already bringing her in front of the Servant. However, just as the tip of the lance went through the red letters and numbers, his entire body faded away. Her eyes widened. He then reappeared to her left, slashing downwards. She twisted away in the nick of time and blocked with her weapon. She was then thrown back and crashed to the ground.

"How hilarious./ You just set off my trap card./ Your death approaches," he declared as he switched out his sword for a rocket launcher, which he fired at his opponent. The explosion sent off a cloud of earth and debris everywhere. Ruler manifested her armor and weapon, standing in front of Sagara to protect him stray rocks. At that time, a car pulled to the roadside.

Seconds ticked by as the dust settled. Then, Lancer charged out and clashed blades with Assassin, who resummoned his katana. She smirked and suddenly lashed out with a roundhouse that struck him in the side of the head. With his turn to fly, he dug his blade into the ground to steady himself as well as land on bended knee. He took time to shake his head a little, but within scant seconds Lancer was already in range and ready to impale him. Without warning, another shadow dashed in between them and parried the lance away. A little surprise, Lancer backed off and took stock of the situation.

"Hope I'm not too late for the party," Saber joked as he shouldered his sword, "Did you save me a dance?"

"Why, hello there, pretty boy," she replied with a similar tone, "I can dance with you if you like."

"That was a close call, Ruler," called out Gordes as he huffed and puffed his way over, "We came here for you." Then, noticing Sagara, "Oh, you're here too?"

"Yeah. I've got Assassin here too," the magus said as he thumbed behind him. The Servant of Black just waved.

"Saber of Black and his Master," she queried.

"Indeed," the newly arrived Master affirmed, "I am Gordes Musik Yggdmillenia." Turning to face the combatants, he declared, "Lancer of Red. We witnessed you trying to murder Ruler. Attempting to kill the hero who is to oversee the Holy Grail War is an outrageous violation of the rules."

"Can't deny that," she admitted with a shrug. Looking back to the new arrival, she said, "So pretty boy here is Saber from your side? You guys just like to put up roadblocks against me, huh."

"Silence!" the former shouted indignantly, "Between Assassin, Saber, and Ruler, you don't stand a chance!"

"I cannot," stated the chosen mediator, much to Gordes' surprise, "As Ruler, I cannot interfere with a battle between Servants. Lancer of Red's attempt on my life is a separate matter. As such, I can only oversee the fight."

"Geez, all this talking. Enough with the blah, blah, blah already," muttered Saber. Glancing back at his Master for a moment, he then dashed at Lancer, "Sorry, for interfering, but I think I'll take over from Assassin."

With wide, swinging arcs, his attacks put her on the defensive. She retreated to the air and he leaped up after her, dashing through the air and sending a slash her way. She blocked and lunged down as gravity brought him down. He blocked with his sword and the ground exploded as they landed. She then pushed herself off hastily as a bullet ripped through the air, right where her head was. They looked to the side as Assassin reset the bolt on his sniper rifle.

"Assassin! You should not interfere!" Ruler admonished. The Servant in question waved her off like it was nothing.

**XD**

"I don't mind," spoke up Lancer as she readied to charge, "Keeps me on my toes. Done that before." And she made her move.

Saber twisted around to avoid two jabs and then leaped back as she jumped up and hammered the lance downwards, producing a small shockwave. She flipped back to avoid another bullet and Saber took this time to attack, dashing forward and slashing wide several times in rapid succession. Forced back, she suddenly swung her spear around, catching another bullet sent her way and deflecting it to him. His eyebrow raised, he jumped over it and the bullet exploded on impact with the ground, green sludge bursting out. Saber smirked at that. He and Lancer then rushed at each other, blade and point clashing as they swerved and parried each other's attacks several times. As they did this, she leaned back and dodged another bullet by a breath of hair. Swinging once, she proceeded to kick Saber away, who guarded with his sword. She leaped up and charged at him, her lance crashing on the ground as he jumped over her, already anticipating the attack.

At the apex of the jump, a large revolver appeared in his other hand and he shot at her. She danced around the shot as well as another of Assassin's sniper rounds, which exploded in an electrical discharge. He landed, shooting at her several times, each shot expertly dodged as she danced around them. In return, she swung her spear around and deflected Assassin's shot into him again. This time, he was ready and shot the bullet, the resulting clash exploded in a conflagration of fire and electricity.

"Not bad. Not bad at all," she praised as she suddenly relaxed her stance, much to the wariness of Saber, "But I think that's enough for now. It's time."

"Time? What time... oh," started the Servant of the Sword, but then only noticed the beginnings of a rising sun peeking out from behind the mountains.

"That's right. As much as I'd like to continue dancing, but this girl doesn't work after hours," she told him with a shrug, "After all, the War is supposed to be kept a secret, right?"

"No harm no foul, I suppose," he replied as he shouldered his sword, "I guess we'll have to continue this dance later."

"You sure know how to keep a girl wanting more," she teased him as the others came nearer, "We should definitely continue later, pretty boy."

"Wait! Lancer of Red," Ruler called out, but her words were ignored and the Servant disappeared. A look of disappointment graced her face as she stepped up to Saber and said, "It was a good fight. It could have done without Assassin's interference, however."

"Hey, whether he jumped in or not, is up to him," Saber of Black stated nonchalantly as he shrugged, "It was his fight, to begin with. I just helped end it. Right, Assassin?"

The Servant concerned nodded. Then, focusing on Ruler, more numbers and letters appeared.

**3MTA3**

She shook her head sadly. Gordes interjected by clearing his voice and requested, "Ruler, would you now come with us to Castle Millenia?"

"No. I must stay neutral," she refused.

"But, there is no better place to survey the area than our domain!" he tried to persuade her.

"I am able to oversee the whole of Trifas at once. No need for concern," she refuted.

His eye twitched at that moment. Sagara quipped in, "Oi, calm down Gordes. She's right you know. Hell, I bet she found my Assassin the same way." At that mention, she nodded in agreement.

"...I see," the large magus gritted out, apparently put off by the whole thing. As he turned around to walk back to the car, he ordered, "Saber, we're leaving!"

Said Servant sighed and said to the neutral party, "Don't worry about the hard ass. You do you." With his part said, he shifted back to spirit form.

"Oi, oi, what about me?" called out the Master of Assassin as his Servant decided to make himself scarce too.

"Shut up and get in," Gordes retorted as he continued walking. The former rolled his eyes and went after him.

* * *

He slowly opened his eyes. That dream was horrible. So many of his brothers and sisters being used up and then tossed aside. It was horrible. He looked to the side and saw a lady with red hair sleeping in a chair next to the bed. This was unexpected. Did she bring him here? Was it her that helped him? So many questions and no answers.

"Who are you?" were his first words, already deciding that it was the best question to answer at the moment.

She slowly stirred and opened her eyes. She smiled, "Ah, you're awake. How are you feeling?"

A little taken aback ber her concern, he said slowly, "I... am fine. Thank you for saving me."

"Oh, so the boy is up already?" spoke another voice. He was shocked to see another person materialize on the other side of the bed. He was huge! He had never seen anyone so tall before.

"Ah, you should thank Berserker too," spoke up the lady, "He helped save you as well."

"Maybe you shouldn't thank me yet, Rider," said the man as his eyes stared directly at his own widened ones.

_Berserker? Rider? These... are Servants!_

His heart started racing in fear.

_Are they going to send me back? No..._

His hands clenched at the bedsheets.

"Berserker, whatever it is you're doing, stop. You are frightening the poor boy," admonished the red-headed Servant.

"Are you joking? He's fine," the giant Servant chided with a grin. He continued, "Well, son. Do you know who you are and where you are right now? I hope you do cause' I'm sure my nanomachines can't fix memory loss."

"I... I am a homunculus..." he trailed off as he tried to muster his words without tearing up, "Creations like me only have a few years to live before dying..."

"You poor boy," muttered the lady sadly.

"So, what's next on your agenda, son?" the giant asked, "Now that you've escaped capture, what will you do now?"

"I... don't know," he admitted. This much was true. What now? He was clueless. All he knew was that he didn't want to die in that tank. To be discarded like a puppet. What did he want? The burning question.

Berserker let out an exasperated sound and said, "Then you can stay here and think about what you want to do. For now at least. Later, if I should ask you again, I expect an answer. If not, I'm taking them back."

"No. How can you do this when you've just helped him?" protested Rider as she stood up.

"I can and I will. Those machines are mine to give and mine to take. That is final," the former retorted as he dematerialized.

She sighed and turned back to the homunculus. "Ah, I'm sorry you had to hear that," she said kindly, her motherly smile returning to her face, "Don't worry. Until you find your answer, I'll help you in any way I am able to." She then disappeared too.

He settled back into his bed, the question of what to do next weighing heavily on his mind.

Several minutes later, he felt restless in addition to his troubles. He got up and tried to move around. Each step was shaky, his legs trembling with the strain of his body's weight.

_I don't know what to do. I'm supposed to use this time to figure it out on my own but I have no idea where to start._

He stumbled. He reached out to grab a nearby table and managed to steady himself. He paused to take a moment's rest.

_Berserker will kill me if I don't have an answer. What do I say? I don't want to die. I want to live. I just want to survive and live. What do I do?_

He tried to walk over to the bookshelf but he misstepped and tumbled down to the floor. Groaning in pain, he tried to push himself up to his feet but it felt that even his whole body felt tired after that ordeal. So he sat there, his heart troubled and his body worn out.

_What should I do next..._

**Commentary:-**

**Hello everyone. Welcome back to the next chapter of Doubtful Origin. So... not many people tried to guess their identities. Hmm. I suppose I can list them down.**

**Red Faction**

**Saber - still Mordred.  
Archer - Peacock from Skullgirls  
Lancer -  
Rider - Zero from Drakengard 3  
Berserker - Doomslayer from Doom 2016  
Caster -  
Assassin - still Semiramis**

**Black Faction**

**Saber - Nero from DMC5  
Archer - Mael Radec from Killzone series  
Lancer -  
Rider - someone from Fire Emblem  
Berserker - Senator Armstrong from MGS Revengeance  
Caster -  
Assassin - Zer0 from Borderlands 2**

**As you can see, there are still a couple more Servants up for identification. Yes, DocHoliday, Rider of Black is not Church. This ain't Red vs Blue. I think we all can blame autocorrect for not having her name here. Nevertheless, maybe someone else can put her correct name down. On another note, this chapter does feature Lancer of Red a little more, so guess away! Other than that, we have Seig. Although, I think I should call him something else since I don't see Seigfried anywhere near here. And... Ruler is still the same. I have not made any changes to Ruler. Good or bad, I'll deal with it. Also, if you want, you can also leave suggestions on what to call him. Yeah? Great!**

**Also, don't forget to leave a review after reading, would you kindly?**


	4. Discovery

**I do not own Fate/Apocrypha nor any other Servants depicted here.**

Discovery

Rider was quite surprised to find the homunculus boy on the floor when she returned to the room. She hurried over and knelt down to gently guide him to his feet.

"Why did you try to walk?" she asked with concern, "You had only just recovered. Your body is still weak and still adjusting to Berserker's help."

"I... I just... I don't want to die."

"Eh? No, you won't die," she replied comfortingly as she helped him to hobble back to his bed, "Berserker is just saying that."

"How can you be sure?"

They finally reached the bed and she guided him to a seated position. "...I don't know," she admitted after a moment, "I do not know him well enough to be sure."

"Then, I don't know how to give him an answer," he replied forlornly, "This feeling... I feel so useless. It's unbearable. But... I don't want to die."

"You will live. You just need to take it a bit at a time," she assured him as she knelt down to face him, placing her hands on his shoulders, "Think of this as a challenge. Your challenge."

"Challenge?" he repeated with a puzzled look on his face.

"A challenge," she affirmed confidently, "Life is full of challenges, many of them difficult. You may even fall down due to our hardships. But, it's not if you fall down. It's how you get back on your feet and push forward." Glancing down at his legs, she continued, "First off, you need to fill your belly and get some energy. Your body will need it."

"You... you are so kind," he muttered as he looked down at his knees.

"Chin up," she told him as she lifted his face up with her finger, "I know how to be kind because I raised children of my own. And right now, you're like a child." She then used the same hand to mess with his hair, "Don't worry. You'll be up and running soon enough."

"...Can I really live?"

"Of course you can, son," proclaimed Berserker loudly as he shifted back to the real world.

"You..." she muttered as she stood up defensively to protect the boy.

"...I'm not here for my answer, Rider," he stated as he pushed his glasses up, "More like to give him an answer." Focusing on the homunculus, he replied, "Your will to live is strong. Taking your fate into your own hands is admirable. You fought for your right to live, so you deserve to live your life as you see fit. If not, what's the point of coming all this way?"

"I... do?"

"Of course you do!" he replied grandly as he threw his arms wide and gestured, "This is exactly why I gave you some of my strength. It will help better your body and protect you as long as you're alive. As long as you fight to live your life the way you want to, it's fine with me."

The homunculus could only look at him in surprise. "I... deserve to live..." he muttered to himself, and then asked, "But, what does it mean to live?"

"Family."

"Change the world."

Two different answers from two different Servants. Each worthy of being followed. But...

"And you are able to find your own way, your own meaning for living. You just have to figure it out," Rider advised him, "Most normal people don't know what to live for when they are young, much like you. You will come to it eventually. It just takes time."

"Time I don't have," the boy muttered, once more downcast.

"Pah, enough moping around," Berserker told him, "For now, rest and eat. You need some meat on your bones. Tomorrow, I will train you. You need some experience using those machines after all."

"Eh?"

"Leave his dinner to me," the Servant of the Mount declared gladly, "It is good to see that under that under that toughness, you are a kind person, Berserker."

"Oh please, I just want to see that boy's full potential," the Servant of Madness scoffed.

Rider made a sound that resembled a giggle before leaving the room through the door.

* * *

"Eh, you want me to go back there? I just got here!"

Lancer leaned back into the chair and steepled his hands. It was past breakfast when Darnic called in Sagara for a small meeting. It was then that the magus was told that he was being sent back to Shigisaora to spy on the Red Faction. Something that Sagara opposed to doing, it seems.

"We need your Assassin to help. I need to know what the enemy is doing. This information could be crucial to us," he reasoned to the difficult Master.

"I suppose... " mused the Master of Assassin with a frown, "I will be getting transport?"

"Of course," agreed Darnic, "There shouldn't be any problem going there and getting out."

"Hmph, I was looking forward to getting a bit of rest before doing anything else," the man grumbled, "Fine, I guess I'll be leaving now?" Getting the nod from the leader of the Yggdmillenia, he got up and left.

"I do hope he turns up something," Lancer stated as he glanced over to his Master, "After what he told us on how Lancer of Red fought, it is possible that they have gotten irregular Servants as well."

"Like you and the other Servants?" questioned the former.

"Yes. Lancer's weapon sounded like a hextech weapon that some people in my world might have used," explained the latter as he got up from his chair, "While I have not heard of any well-known hero's to have used a hextech spear, I cannot rule out that possibility. This is why I want information, even the smallest bit. I refuse to go against that faction blindly."

"And I am sure Hyouma and Assassin can find out what we need to know," proclaimed Darnic confidently.

"I certainly hope so."

* * *

"I think you can tell them to stop looking for the homunculus now," spoke up Caster as he looked out the window, catching sight of the timid homunculus walking next to the large Servant that is Berserker. The boy seemed to be carrying a backpack of sorts.

"Oh?" sounded Roche as he came over to look. He blinked and said, "Hmm? Berserker found him? But he is leading him outside? Why?"

"I suppose he took ownership of it? I know not his mind, Master," the Servant chided gently, "In any case, they can be called off. I rather you have enough homunculi than have that Servant dispose of them all in an attempt to return that one to you. You will have to use another to create any more golems."

"I guess so..." the young magus mused, "I shall follow your advice then, Caster."

* * *

"Come on! Hit me!" Berserker shouted as he swung his blackened arms at the homunculus boy that was scrambling to get away from the attacks, hurriedly dropping his backpack. They had walked quite a ways away before he took off his coat and his tie, dropping them both on the ground in a pile. Then, he told the boy to hold up his guard before he started swinging.

" But! But! Oof!" he groaned as a punch slammed into his arm, the skin on it turning black in response. As dark as Berserker's arms. He flew back a little, his body tumbling on the dirt and grass.

"Enough with the 'buts' already," said the Servant with a smirk as he held up a fist and gestured, "This is just a taste of what you might be able to do later on. Hell, even if you don't fight like me, any weapon you pick up would be deadly in your hands because of your training. Your Strength. Your Determination. And Endurance." Looking down at the tired boy, who was lying on his back and breathing heavily, he relented, "Fine. I suppose you can rest for a bit and get back your breath. Maybe I should have you run around the castle a few times later on. Right now, we continue with your defense. You need to try and get the feel for it. Getting that down will help you strengthen your punches when you need to."

"Is... it like... Reinforcement?" the homunculus asked as he regained his breath. He slowly sat up and looked at the Servant of Madness.

"Hmm, I suppose you can liken it to that," he mused. But, he came back with a grin, "But it's a hell lot stronger than that." His smile then faded away, "Get up."

Slowly, the nameless boy got up and gingerly got into a defensive stance.

"Clench your fists and hold it closer your head," Berserker ordered as he corrected it. He then slammed his fists together and started to swing again. More slowly this time. This time, the boy was able to block the blows, albeit clumsily. He kept grimacing as the blows connected, signifying that it still stung even though the nanomachines reactively swarmed under his skin. Slowly but surely, he was able to keep in tandem with the swings, even if it took a while. However, when the Servant increased the power behind one of his punches, the boy staggered and fell on his back.

"Son, you gotta keep up," he told the downed homunculus that was quickly getting to his feet in attention, "You're getting used to it, sure. But it ain't fast enough."

"Sorry," the latter said, as he got into stance again, looking quite determined, "I can do better."

"Good," the former replied as he got ready again.

"Good morning, Berserker of Black."

Surprised by the unknown voice, they looked off to the side. A girl was coming out of the woods with a trolly bag. She was dressed in school clothes that didn't seem native to Trifas. He also felt something off about the girl. Another Servant, perhaps?

"Who's asking?" he asked as he turned to face her, relaxing as he knew fighting wasn't allowed in daylight.

"I am Ruler," she replied as she left the bag at the edge of the wooded area, continuing to come nearer. "Who is this? Does your Master know him?" she asked as she stopped and motioned to the boy.

"This is a homunculus from the castle that I've taken under my wing," he replied.

"I see," she said as she stepped closer to the boy, "Hello. I am Servant Ruler. May I know your name?"

"Umm, I don't have a name," the boy admitted.

"Don't have a name?" she repeated in disbelief, "Everyone should have a name."

"Hmph, I don't think those in the castle name their homunculi, my Master included," Berserker answered instead. He then stared at him in thought, a smile eventually forming on his face. "Your name is Jack," he said with an air of finality.

"Jack?" the newly named boy repeated in surprise.

"The name of the guy who killed me," he explained, much to the surprise of the homunculus and the other Servant, "Strong guy. Defeated me mano e mano. Another one that I happen to respect for his strength. Hmm... Wonder whats he doing now?"

The train of thought was suddenly interrupted by muffled growling. "Ah, my stomach. I believe it's time to eat," stated the newly named Jack nonchalantly.

"You are quite calm about it," commented the mediator.

"It is still new to me," the boy admitted, "Rider explained being hungry to me and how to remedy it. She also made me lunch."

"Right, enough yapping. Get your pack, son," relented Berserker as he went to retrieve his coat and tie, dusting them down, "Eat up and recover. We'll continue after lunch."

"Berserker, a word?" asked Ruler as she motioned over to the wooded area. He nodded and followed after, leaving the boy to his food. "You seem to be training that boy for the War. Is it really necessary?" she asked upfront as they reached the shade.

"Whether he wants to fight or not, is up to him," the former stated as he crossed his arms in front of him, "I am just giving him the option to do so. And if I must be honest, I'd rather he take part in some of the action, if not to give him experience."

"From what I can see, he is like a newborn. He shouldn't be thrust into this path like this. He should have time to live his life before making such a decision," the latter protested.

"If he wasn't a homunculus, maybe I'd say yes if he was still a baby," he replied, "But he came out fully grown and swinging. He decided he didn't want to die like another random homunculus and grabbed the chance to live his own life. Do you honestly think a person like that would stay away from the fighting if he could do anything about it?"

Silence fell as she stood there taking in what he said. "No. He wouldn't choose to leave this behind and learn how to live peacefully," she admitted after exhaling a sigh, "I have seen it so. He will be drawn to the fighting, no matter how much anyone would try to prevent that. I suppose, in a way, you are doing the right thing."

"Of course, I am," he said rather triumphantly. Glancing over to the boy, who had finished his food, he continued, "I have better get back to his training. What will you do now?"

"I will be going back to Shigisaora," she said as she reached for her bag, "The Red Faction has made an attempt on my life. Other than that, they haven't made a move on your faction. I want to find out why."

"Good luck with that," he wished her as he left the shade, "Son, get ready." With that, he broke into a run and jumped at him, throwing out a heavy punch. Jack held up both his arms, the nanomachines blackening them. His guard held strong and his feet still planted on the ground, even if he was pushed back a few meters. Berserker grinned. "Good job blocking that," he congratulated with a smirk.

"Like Reinforcement, but a little different," the boy said with a bit of joy with nervous breaths, "I finally figured out how different."

"Good. Good," the Servant continued, "Then, its time to turn it up a bit."

* * *

In spite of his orders, Sagara decided to take the more scenic route to the other city just to get some relax time, much to the chagrin of Assassin. Even the driver, a nameless homunculus assigned to him, constantly reminded him about his task. Even so, the car was relatively fast and Sagara reached Shigisoara at night time. Having checked into an inn, be sent out familiars to map out the place. The next day, he spent the majority of the day wandering around the entire city, waiting for Assassin to notify him of anything. He was quite puzzled by the absence of any traces of the Masters. He did discover several Clocktower magus around the place, presumably there to keep tabs on the War, but no Red Faction.

"Damn, still nothing," he grumbled as he walked down the main street, the evening sun radiant as ever, "I mean, there should be something here, but it's like they just vanished."

As he continued with his jaunt, he suddenly caught sight of a familiar face. "Eh? When did she get here?" he asked himself as she came up to him.

"Please, walk with me," she simply said as she slowly walked past him. As he followed after her after glancing around, she stated, "You know, don't you... I can't detect them here at all. As if they had left the city."

"How the hell did you know I was sent here?" he asked, brimming with curiosity puzzlement.

"I didn't," she admitted, "I was only aware of your Servant's presence as I came closer to the city."

"If that's the case... any chance you can point me in the right direction?" he asked, hoping she would comply but preparing to be turned down.

"I cannot tell you," she replied as they went down a different street.

He came to a stop and let off an exasperated groan as he looked to the sky, "I had a feeling you'd say that. Damn it." Focussing back to her, he asked, "In that case, what are you doing here? Didn't you say the Servant's are gone?"

"Even if they are gone, the Masters should still be here," she said as she knelt down and touched the white brick road. He sensed something happening and assumed it was another part of her power he probably didn't need to know off. She stood up again and said, "My apologies, but I have to go now."

He watched as she walked off in the direction of the church on the hill. He shrugged and headed in the opposite direction, finally feeling that coming here was a waste of time. If he followed after her, there's no way she would allow him to do anything to the Red Faction. Still...

"_Assassin, follow her. I'll be in my room waiting_."

* * *

"My liege, we have received a report from our other informants," announced Darnic as he entered the room, bringing several sheaths of papers.

Lancer took them and began going through it page by page. It did not take long for him to finish and the Servant directed the next words, "Is it true?"

"Yes. As the report says, large amounts of materials and relics were brought into the country," the former confirmed.

"I see. Why would the Red Faction want all these things?" the Servant muttered as he looked down at the reports, detailing a very long list dating back all the way to the previous month.

"It is most likely to be part of Caster's workshop," Darnic proposed. It seemed right, as there was no way any other class would need this much material to work with, especially ancient relics.

"This means they had plenty of time to prepare," the Servant surmised as he placed the report on the table, "It may be possible that they might attack soon." This statement startled Darnic slightly and Lancer was quite to catch on. "Think about it. With so much preparation time and with us being left in the dark until we could get Assassin, I wouldn't be surprised that there will be an attack any day now," he explained as he got up from his seat and moved to the window, "We have to be on guard, even more so after this report. Have your sharpest eyes on watch around us and have Archer assist... and have we heard back from Hyouma and Assassin?"

"I am afraid not," was the reply.

"Let him continue searching. What he finds could change this War, now more than ever."

"By your leave, my liege."

* * *

The great double doors were pushed open and Lancer of Red stepped into a grand and spacious throne room. The others were already there. Rider stood on the left side of the aisle while Caster was on the left. Assassin sat on the throne while her Master stood next to her.

"So, what's the announcement about?" she asked aloud, "And where's Berserker and Archer?"

"Archer's in her room, watching that box of hers," Rider informed, "In her words, 'Shut up and leave me alone. Just call me when the action starts'... and Berserker is behind you."

She turned around and saw the armored Servant leaning against the wall nearest to the double doors. He was eerily still, like looking at a statue. The sense of anger was being restrained, scarily so.

"Okay... so, the announcement?" she asked as she turned back to Assassin, assuming it was her since she was on the throne.

"Preparations are done. Now that we're ready, it's time to move," the Servant of Murder announced regally, "It's the Great Grail War, after all. Shouldn't we show off a bit?"

"You spend so much time making this place and now we're moving?" Rider snarked, "Do we need to clap for you too? Keep in mind, I am not bringing anyone along with me."

"Oh, no. You misunderstand me, Rider," the former corrected with a smirk.

Then, rumbling filled the air taking everyone by surprise. Meanwhile, Assassin stood up and walked down the throne and motioned them to follow. Only one decided not to comply. Moments later, the other three were surprised.

"I suppose this is a good thing," Rider muttered begrudgingly, a little impressed by it.

"Well, this is a surprise," stated Lancer.

Caster remained silent.

"Isn't it? This is my Noble Phantasm, Hanging Gardens of Babylon," Assassin proclaimed proudly, "This castle wasn't built to protect us. It's an aerial fortress."

Finally, Caster said in a monotone, "Impressive."

"At this rate, it will not be long until they can see us from Castle Millenia," Shirou Kotomine told them, "Everyone. Get ready for battle."

**Commentary:-**

**Hello everyone. Welcome back to the next chapter of Doubtful Origin. So... not many people tried to guess their identities. Hmm. I suppose I can list them down.**

**Red Faction**

**Saber - still Mordred.  
Archer - Peacock from Skullgirls  
Lancer -  
Rider - Zero from Drakengard 3  
Berserker - Doomslayer from Doom 2016  
Caster -  
Assassin - still Semiramis**

**Black Faction**

**Saber - Nero from DMC5  
Archer - Mael Radec from the Killzone series  
Lancer -  
Rider - Cherche from Fire Emblem  
Berserker - Senator Armstrong from MGS Revengeance  
Caster - The Ancestor from Darkest Dungeon  
Assassin - Zer0 from Borderlands 2**

**As you can see, we still have 3 slots empty. Lancer and Caster of Red as well as Lancer of Black. I do admit that I didn't really feature them that much. But, they are still not being identified. ****Not to worry, ****I will certainly release their identities. Moving on, the one puzzle I had was for this chapter was Sieg's replacement name. I eventually settled on Jack due to the advice given by a few people. People familiar with Berserker will know who Jack is. So, the lul in the action before the attack of the floating city. Berserker deciding to train Jack here to prepare him... Training which involves trying to beat him up while getting him to learn how to the donated nanomachines. Yeah, that would work. At the same time, Sagara is on his way of finding out, the same time as Ruler, about Hanging Gardens. Yes, now there is a T.V. on board. No, Archer will throw you out if you disturb her cartoon time. And anime time. Alright, folks, that's a wrap. Look forward to some action next time on Doubtful Origin. ****If you're able, please leave a comment or a review after reading, would you kindly?**


	5. At The Gate

**I do not own Fate/Apocrypha nor any other Servants depicted here.**

At The Gate

"_Leave_."

Sagara hurried away after quickly checking out of the inn. That was clearly a warning from Assassin, so he complied. Getting in the car, he ordered the homunculus driver out of the city. As they sped down the streets, his Servant reappeared in the seat next to him.

"Traps laid in the church./ She was able to escape./ She already left."

"Left the city?" he queried. Getting a nod, he mused, "She must have sensed something outside. Is there any way we could find her?"

Without a word, the Servant of Murder thumbed outside his window. Leaning over to get a glimpse, his mouth dropped. A freaking floating city was rising and flying in the sky.

"How the... that has to be Caster of Red's... it has to be," he muttered as he returned to his seat, now worried, "Fuck, and I refused to take a phone too. Shit. I can't even warn them now."

"Ruler."

He blinked and reached over again. At the parts where the treeline thinned, he could see a cloud of dust racing just behind the flying fortress.

"Doesn't matter. She's neutral, even if we're chasing the same thing," he replied. He then turned over to the driver and yelled, "Step on it!"

He was not prepared to be thrown back into the seats as the car engine roared to a higher gear. The car raced down the road in a great effort to reach the castle before their enemies could. A race against time.

* * *

Archer's lenses glinted in the moonlight. "They have seeded the place with teeth," he said aloud, his wheelchair-bound Master beside him, "They seem to be growing into skeletons and are marching towards us."

"Seems like that," said Darnic as he jumped down from the roof, surprising the young Master.

"Uncle Darnic!" she exclaimed softly.

"Go inside, Fiore. We must leave everything to our Servants now," he advised her.

"Good words, Darnic," stated Lancer as he appeared next to them, clad in gold plated armor and black leather, "Such a thing has never been truer." Caster appeared behind them in a similar fashion while Berserker simply walked out on the balcony, Caules following behind him.

"Archer, their numbers," the Servant of the Spear requested.

"A few thousand in number, approximately," Archer reported calmly.

"I shall take my leave now. Please battle to your heart's content, my liege," said Darnic before retreating inside.

"Caster, is there enough to handle them?" Lancer asked after nodding to his Master.

The Servant in question could only chuckle and reply, "Well, let us see then, hmm?" He took a step to the front and waved at glowing green hand across his point of view, "My summons shall disrupt theirs for a time being. But they won't be able to do much when the Servants appear."

"Very well," the former replied as he mused a little before issuing his orders, "Archer, keep watch over us. Watch for enemy Servants and take them out if possible. Berserker. Take care of the homunculi squads afforded to us. Do not waste them. Where are Rider and Saber?"

"I'm surprised you didn't have me take half of Berserker's little army," quipped as the Servant of the Sword appeared.

"From the way you acted, I presumed you prefer being a lone wolf. It wouldn't do well to burden you with leadership whereas Berserker seems to have some sense of it," the lead Servant of Black reasoned.

"And what of me, my liege?" asked Rider as she appeared in the same manner.

"Hmm, I never did ask what sort of mount..."

"Wyvern. I am a wyvern knight."

"Wyvern, as in dragon?" he queried, a little surprised.

"In a sense."

"Very well, keep an eye on us from up above. There may very well be flying enemies we do not know about. Other than that, the same as Archer," he ordered.

"In that case, by your leave," she wished him as she jumped on the parapet and leaped off.

"Minerva! To me!"

A great monstrous roar sounded and Rider flew out into the night sky on a dark, dragon-like shape.

Lancer summoned his own weapon and said, "Come. Let us show the Red Faction what we can do."

"Yes, my liege," saluted Archer.

"Hmph, let's go then," replied Berserker with a smirk.

"Time to kick some ass," stated Saber, his sword materializing on his back.

Caster only nodded and stroked his beard.

* * *

The Dragon Teeth Warriors continued their shambling march across the expansive field that led up to the castle. However, one unit stopped and looked down. Another, more human-like, skeletal hand was gripping on its leg bone. It tried to shake it off but to no avail. Then, several others burst out of the ground and pulled it apart. Further in front, the earth seemed to explode outward as several large armored skeleton warriors rose up from the ground and smashed through the army of dragons teeth with large maces. As if on cue, more skeletons broke through the earth and brought swords, clubs, spears, and axes to bear on their summoner's enemies. The numbers in the surprise attack were a few hundred less than the attacking force, the surprise attack that was started by the larger skeletons evened out their numbers.

Semiramis grit her teeth as she watched what happened on the display. She was surprised at first but slowly became angered by what happened to her seeded army. Lancer could see it well on her face. The face of a commander who just realized their plan had gone off the rails. However, the assassin was quite skilled in schooling her pretty face. Even so, the outcome of the ambush was pretty clear.

"It seems we do not have an army anymore," said Caster, sounding like he had very little care for what had just happened.

"I can always create more," said Assassin a little too defensively.

Inwardly, Lancer sighed. Time to show off indeed. She nodded her head down and shook it. Then, after looking around, she sounded in surprise, "Hmm? Where's Berserker?" Everyone else in the room tore their eyes away from the display to look around. True to her words, the Servant of Madness had disappeared.

Assassin frowned and stared at the display again, the screens shifting multiple times before showing the front edge of the Hanging Gardens. There stood the Servant, looking down at the battlefield.

"What in the world is he-"

Before the Servant of Murder could complete her question, the green giant leaped off the ledge. Silence reigned the room.

"He is certainly eager."

Was that mirth in Caster's voice?

"What does that silent imbecile think he's doing?" groused the priest's Servant as she shifted the viewing once more.

It focused on the battlefield, still full of enemy undead. Then, the very center of the army blew up as something crashed into it. The whole group seemed to face inward while waiting for the dust settled. Suddenly, two skeletons got blasted apart and Berserker walked through the smoke with a shotgun. He then raced through the army, cocking and shooting it, taking out many of the skeletons in quick succession in the direction of the Hanging Gardens.

As he ran past the edge of the skeleton army, the gun in his hands warped and distorted in orange, red light, becoming a large chaingun. The barrels spun for a moment before spraying out hot lead at the approaching army. He moved his aim from left to right in front of him, very slowly, and covered every inch of the battlefield. At every turn of the barrel, hundreds of the smaller skeletons crumpled and crumbled as their bones splintered and flimsy armor got punctured by high-velocity rounds. Then, it moved from right to left, finishing off the small stragglers and wrecking the larger bone constructs. They tumbled over as their leg bones were destroyed, leaving the body vulnerable to hot metal. The entire army of bone... granted a second death.

As the barrels spun to a stop, the ground rumbled once more. It broke open and a large construct climbed out made of bone and rotten flesh; its mouth and hands seemingly stained with fresh blood. Berserker's weapon warped once more and became a double-barrelled shotgun. He took time to reload two shells as the ghoul lumbered over. He snapped the gun shut as the ghoul paused to pick up a skull that wasn't destroyed. As the ghoul tossed its horrific missile, the Servant ducked and ran at it. The large undead swiped at him with its other hand, but it was dodged as well. He unloaded one shot into its knee, blasting off its leg and causing it to fall forward. It pushed itself on its knees and tried to swipe at him again, which he shot off the offending hand with the other shell. It roared out in defiance as the shotgun transformed into a chainsaw. It tried to block it with its stump as he swung it from the top, but the rotating teeth shredded through flesh and bone. Berserker expertly carved through the arm, the skull, and the chest before pushing off the offending carcass.

Once again, silence filled the room.

"What a terrifying individual," Caster stated. Nobody disagreed.

* * *

Caster appeared next to Lancer and Berserker just outside the castle, looking a little troubled. "Berserker appeared and destroyed my summoned army after I destroyed theirs," he informed them with concern.

"Hmm? Sounds like a strong Servant," their Berserker said with a smirk as he looked towards the plains. He looked over the homunculi they had and pointed out, "You! You! Take your squads out there and try and stop Berserker of Red!" The two squads saluted and marched out.

"We shouldn't throw lives away like that," stated Lancer, "Even if they aren't human. They should have remained on defense."

"There's still plenty more back there. They'll be fine," the large Servant brushed off confidently, "I want to see how he reacts as well as get an idea of how strong he really is. No offense, but bones don't hold a candle against humans, or at least human-like things."

"We shall see."

"Hmm, see indeed," muttered Caster as he held up his hand, glowing green, "We shall see what they see. Sight beyond sight."

A viewing portal shimmered into view in front of the three, from the point of view from the homunculus at the very back of the squad. Patiently, they waited for the squads to stop marching. Slowly the homunculi spread out into a line, all facing the slowly advancing Berserker of Red.

"Halt! Advance no further!" the first leader shouted, but to no avail. The Servant kept walking.

"Charge!" the second leader shouted after a moment's silence. The first squad leaped into the air while the second squad brought up the rear for a second strike. The first wave had their weapons shatter upon impact. The startled squad crashed to the ground while he kept walking.

"I've seen enough," muttered Berserker of Black with an eager smirk, "Time I get down there to stop him myself." turning back to the other homunculi squads, he shouted, "Guard the castle with your life!" He nodded at their salute and moved on the engage the other Berserker.

As he walked on, Lancer and Caster kept watching. The second wave had their weapons broken as well. The two homunculi that were in the way were pushed aside and the Servant kept walking.

"Enough," Lancer ordered, Caster obeying and closing the display, "Let Saber know to stay clear of the both of them."

"Very well. I shall return to scrying the positions of the other enemies," the Servant of Magecraft informed as he dematerialized.

Lancer stood there still, musing his options. Then, he made his decision, "I suppose I should take to the field as well."

* * *

Rider of Black made good time in approaching the flying fortress. It looked quite intimidating and she doubted she could do anything to it. If she had to be honest with herself, it was curiosity that drew her up here. That and wondering if she could pick out any lone Servants on it. But, judging by how big it was, it felt like wasted effort.

"I suppose I can pass it off as scouting, right Minerva?" she asked as she pats the head of her wyvern, who roared in response. She giggled and replied, "Alright, if all goes well, I'll ask the kitchen if they could give you a cow for breakfast. Sounds good, doesn't it?" Another roar.

Then, a swarm of dark things flew out from all sides of the fortress and moved to surround her. Rider caught sight of headless skeletal things with wings and claws.

She sighed and said as she materialized her axe, "I suppose all good things must come to an end. Let's do this, Minerva!" With that, she rode into the thick of it, smacking the first dragon wing warrior into pieces with a great yell.

Unknown to her, a silent distortion slipped by as pieces of bones rained from the sky. At a point furthest away from the Gardens, the distortion warped away, revealing Rider, Caster, and Archer on the back of a dragon several sizes bigger than the wyvern.

"Now that was cool," cooed Archer eagerly as she turned around to look at the Servant of Black.

"Unexpected. To think the Invisibility spell would extend to cover everyone else. Truly interesting," Caster muttered, sounding a little surprised.

"Well, your class, I believe, boosts your capabilities in that area of expertise," the dragon suddenly stated.

"Wow... you can talk! Hey, what's your name?" the Servant of the Bow exclaimed and ran over to the dragon's neck.

"Hmm, I have a sense of both... either Micheal or Mikhail is fine," was the reply.

"Ooooh... sweet..."

"Enough," Rider said sternly as she stomped on its back, "No talking to the passengers, stupid dragon."

Her mount chuckled as he continued heading towards the castle and muttered amusedly, "Even now..."

* * *

Berserker of Red continued his walk towards the castle. The two squads that had tried to intercept him followed after him warily. They were inherently worried as they had failed their duty in trying to stop the Servant. Then he stopped. Right before everyone was Berserker of Black.

"Get your squads back to the castle and weapon up. You're all on defense. I'll handle this," he ordered them as he thumbed behind him. The homunculi leaders nodded and they scrambled past both Servants. The green behemoth stood there quietly as this happened.

"Your strength is impressive, Berserker of Red," said the latter as he took slow steps around the other Servant while folding his hands behind, "How about you join me? Once I win this War and get my wish, we can take over America... and then the world. A world where only the strong survive... where do you think you're going?"

A few seconds into his burgeoning speech, the armored Servant continued walking, fully ignoring the other. Berserker of Black's face darkened in anger and as the Servant began to walk past him, he grabbed the armored shoulder and said, "Did I say you could leave?" He then gripped tightly and actually threw the armor back. The armored Servant didn't topple over but instead, landed on both feet. He then raised both hands as the other Berserker crashed into him. Both of them locked fingers as they pushed against each other.

"I guess I'll have to take that as a 'no'," he sneered out as he matched the pushing power, staring eagerly into the visor with a smirk on his face, "Well then, I guess I'll have to get back to business."

* * *

Having decided to head into the area far from the clash of the two Berserkers, Lancer stopped and took stock of his surroundings. As of yet, nothing out of the ordinary. Then, a faint whistling in the air. He dashed back and avoided the blade meant for his head. With a twist, he brought to bear his own spear to block a follow-up.

"You're fast," the Servant praised as she leaped back a few steps, "Lancer of Red, at your service."

"Lancer of Black," he introduced himself, still keeping his guard up, "You aren't too bad yourself."

"Hmm, I was hoping to bump into the pretty boy, but I guess you'd do instead," she smirked as she prepared to strike.

"Aww, you'd rather settle for him?" a voice called out as Saber rushed past him and swung heavily at her, "I'm hurt."

"There you are!" she exclaimed rather relaxedly as she blocked his attack, "I thought you stood me up."

"No apologies. Now, where were we?" he taunted as both of them took to the air, weapons clashing all the way up.

Lancer sighed a little, wondering what in the world was that about. He supposed it was just an unfinished fight when a battered car swerved up to the area, stopping a few feet in front of him. The door was kicked open and out came a young girl with a strange air around her.

"Damn it, next time pick a sturdier car!" she yelled back at the car.

He caught sight of a man wearing sunglasses moving over to the driver's seat, retorting, "Maybe 'next time' you should drive a God damned tank instead of a car!"

He furrowed his brow, wondering what had just happened here. "Which Servant of Red are you?" he asked carefully.

"Yeah, I'm Saber of Red. Hi there, you're a Servant of Black, aren't you?" she asked as she waved at him.

"Yeah, that's most likely their Lancer," called out the Master as he got out of the car and leaned on the hood.

She looked over him and commented, "He certainly looks the part."

"Listen, Saber, now it's your turn," the Master told her, "I'm getting the hell outta here."

"What the-? You won't stay to see my valiant fight?" she complained as she turned to him.

"Not in the middle of the battlefield."

"Oh, yeah right," she realized. Turning around, she waved him off haughtily with, "Then just flee."

"Yup."

The magus quickly got in the car and drove off. Lancer shook his head, wondering how they could be so casual about all this.

"Good grief, starting the battle without me?" she complained again as she saw him off and looked off to the side, catching an eyeful of Berserker of Red's rampage, "Am I a joke to you?" She then scoffed with, "Whatever. The hero appearing late or the king slowly joining the fray isn't uncommon."

"You speak as if you're nobility," he commented, trying to grasp what sort of character she was. If she preferred to talk first and fight later, who was he to complain?

"Yeah! If you surrender, I'll kill you quick and easy," she offered.

"Such arrogance," he stated as he got into his stance, not taking his eye over her movements, "You must be a young king. Allow this crown prince to school you in the ways of kingship."

"Haa? A crown prince? Sounds like things are getting better," she said with a grin as she materialized her sword, "Alright, show me what you're made off, crown prince!" With a yell, she dashed straight at him.

He replied with a yell of his own.

"For Demacia!"

**Commentary:-**

**Hello everyone. Welcome back to the next chapter of Doubtful Origin. So... not many people tried to guess their identities. Again. Both Lancers still empty. -sigh-**

**Red Faction**

**Saber - still Mordred.  
Archer - Peacock from Skullgirls  
Lancer -  
Rider - Zero from Drakengard 3  
Berserker - Doomslayer from Doom 2016  
Caster - Miraak from Skyrim  
Assassin - still Semiramis**

**Black Faction**

**Saber - Nero from DMC5  
Archer - Mael Radec from the Killzone series  
Lancer -  
Rider - Cherche from Fire Emblem  
Berserker - Senator Armstrong from MGS Revengeance  
Caster - The Ancestor from Darkest Dungeon  
Assassin - Zer0 from Borderlands 2**

**So, it begins. The War begins in earnest. Assassin of Black is running late. He's missing all the killing. Too bad. The War doesn't wait for a single Servant, as Mordred can attest to. Skeletons getting destroyed by skeletons, who in turn get slain by a Servant. Three thousand in number, getting wrecked by a much better equipped army, relatively. And then getting destroyed by a one-man army. Rider of Black, killing her own army of skeletons... but that may take a while. Caster, Rider, and Archer from the Red Faction going all sneaky-like. Then, clash of Berserkers. Red Lancer and Black Saber continue their fight. Then, Red Saber throwing down with Black Lancer. Now, if that doesn't clue you in to his identity, I dunno what will. ****Alright, folks, that's a wrap. ****If you're able, please leave a comment or a review after reading, would you kindly?**


	6. To Battle

**I do not own Fate/Apocrypha nor any other Servants depicted here.**

To Battle

Sounds of metal striking metal resounded through the night. Two figures landed in an open area, stirring up dust and debris as they came to a stop.

"Did you become faster since the last time?" Lancer of Red asked cheekily, "Seems like I need to up the tempo myself."

"Getting serious?" Saber of Black asked with a smirk, "I'd hate to pull a Dad on you."

"A Dad? What in the world is that?" she asked as she settled into her ready stance.

"Well, he was butting heads with my uncle. Since being hard-headed runs in the family and at the time, nothing was getting done, I went and knocked some sense into both of them. More my dad than my uncle," he explained as he fell into his own stance.

With no prior warning, both of them charged at each other. Saber swung with wide arcs while Lancer counter-swung against his blows. A sudden jab by her had Saber lean back to avoid it. Immediately after, he purposely fell on his free hand and kicked out. She let the spear take her over him and with a twist in the air, jammed the point in the ground. Lancer swung herself around the shaft and aimed both her feet at Saber, who blocked the attack with his sword. As he was pushed back, she came at him with several furious jabs that were swiftly parried before drawing his gun and firing a shot off at her.

She smirked as she tilted her head to the side, the bullet barely burning her hair. A few more bullets were sent her way and she quickly dashed to the side. She then leaped up and hovered out of range of the gun. That didn't stop Saber, as he chased after her by leaping as high as he could before disappearing and reappearing in front of her. Several blocked heavy slashes later, he crashed his blade against her lance as they went to the ground again. He went full swing and she landed on the ground on her feet, leaving a deep groove in the ground. Without hesitation, he rushed forward and crossed weapons with her.

"Well, you're not letting me much room to breathe here," she told him with a wary smile.

"What little I saw, I decided that I'm gonna stop you from using that lance of yours to its fullest," he replied, just as careful as they pushed weapons against each other, "Looks like it's working."

Lancer gave Saber a frown and stopped pushing. Dashing back a few steps, she lunged at him. He dodged as she planted her weapon in the ground and swung herself over as a few bullets whizzed past her trail.

"You were saying?" she said, her smirk back on her face. Saber shrugged, mirroring her smirk, and dashed straight at her once more.

* * *

Berserker of Red was thrown to the ground but he rolled to the side as Berserker of Black's shoe crashed on the ground his head formerly was. He grabbed the leg and threw him to the side in turn. With a grunt, the other Berserker tumbled a little before getting to his feet.

"You really don't like to talk, huh," the bespectacled Servant as he charged at his opponent, "That's alright. I can respect a man of few words." He started raining machine-reinforced blows. Berserker of Red expertly weathered them like a boxer would. Suddenly, he ducked under and landed an uppercut square on the jaw. He then punched him in the chest, sending him flying back and digging another groove in the ground. He stared at the stunned Servant before heading towards the castle.

Berserker of Black shook his head and grinned. He quickly got to his feet and rushed at his adversary from behind. He grabbed him by the waist and lifted him over, slamming into the ground. Kicking himself over and on his feet, he repeated the movement another time. Sending himself over again, he lifted and threw the armored Servant into the air. As he landed, Berserker kicked him in the back like he was kicking an American football. Green armor flew in the opposite direction of the castle. He then reached for his glasses and took them off. The frame was bent out of shape and the glass full of spiderweb cracks.

"That didn't last very long," he muttered as he tossed it aside. Then, he loosened his neck and jogged over to the other Servant, who was rapidly recovering. Inwardly, he was a little confused. What happened to the brutal strength that the other Berserker displayed earlier? Sure, the Servant didn't do much against the homunculi. They were weaklings after all. But against him, the Red Servant was playing defensive. This was not productive at all. He came for a great fight and this guy was chickening out. Like hell he is!

"Hey! Where's that strength that you showed off just now? Are you holding back?" he yelled at the Servant of Red, slowly getting quite angry, "Cause' if you are, I might as well end you real quick." In the distance, he heard an explosion. He ignored it, fully concentrating on the Berserker in front of him. With a yell, he rocketed towards the rising green behemoth, the nanomachines turning his entire body black with yellow, glowing lines radiating out of his body.

* * *

Archer kept his overwatch with determination. When everyone else had moved out, it fell to him to not just watched the battlefield but also unsaid that he had to defend the castle as well. All the Master's were here after all. Still, he had no way of detecting Assassin, so he would have to make do to retaliate the moment Assassin struck. Though, he wished that Lancer had thought of giving him some control over the homunculi because the defense was atrocious. Simple guard patrols outside the castle? They should be patrolling inside the castle. A more helpful deterrent against Assassin.

A metallic clink brought him out of his thoughts. On the stone parapet was a small round ball with a number 8 on it and a bomb wick on the top. The wick was lit and it was walking on two short, spindly legs while balancing with two short, spindly arms. He immediately materialized a pistol and shot it. It blew up with a bearable explosion, which he weathered without flinching. Moving towards the edge, he looked down and saw the grounds were littered with old boots, bowling balls, a variety of other knick-knacks, and scorched earth that signified an explosion of some kind. He also noted several bodies of dead homunculi, presumably caught in said explosions. He then looked skyward and within his mask, his eyes narrowed. There was a God-damned dragon circling the castle overhead and its occupants were raining all manner of things down on the outside parameter. The pistol disappeared and a sniper rifle took its place. Through the scope, he spotted a girl with metal arms tossing the rubbish from a cardboard box while a woman in white stood near the base of the neck of the dragon while an unknown in strange armor stood in between. After a moment to observe them, he decided to shoot the girl. Young or not, she was still a Servant and she posed a current danger to the Masters of Black. He pulled the trigger.

Suddenly, the armored Servant pushed the target to the side and held up a fist towards him. A white glowing distortion appeared and deflected the bullet. Archer grunted in annoyance and reloaded the chamber, perhaps this time take another show. He heard the dragon roar and fly off. He watched the retreat through the scope. As he pondered their decision, a crashing sound had him look to the side. Part of the parapet was broken and sitting in its rubble was what could be described as a more obese version of the walking bomb. Seeing that the wick was long, he just walked up to it while exchanging his rifle for a combat knife and slashed it off. He walked away as the wick fell into its hand. He turned to face it again, the combat knife now being a grenade launcher. He shot a grenade at the side of the trembling bomb, the resulting explosion pushed the construct off the parapet to the ground below. He walked over, swapping out the launcher for a bolt gun and fired at it. The explosive bolt went through the base of the wick and blew up the bomb as well as scorching the castle walls.

Satisfied with the adequate defense he put out, he scanned the sky for a moment. While the dragon wasn't returning, he noted that the flying fortress was coming awfully close to the castle.

"What are you planning, Caster of Red?" he muttered in a growl.

* * *

Archer of Red laughed out loud as she lay down on the dragon back to back, kicking her feet in the air. "Man, did you see all that? The confused looks on their faces?" she giggled as she ended her sniggering session.

"We don't have your sharp eyes, Archer," stated Caster neutrally, "We could not see their faces."

"I am sure it was amusing to you but do quiet down unless you wish to attract attention again," muttered out Rider as she mentally directed Micheal to the Gardens.

"Ah, geez. Lighten up a little," the short Servant exclaimed, "What's the worst that could happen?"

Apparently, she spoke too soon as Rider suddenly materialized her sword and swung up. Metal clashed with metal as she parried the axe strike that was aimed at her neck.

"You were saying?" said Servant snarked aloud as she kept her sights on the enemy Rider as that Servant circled around for another pass.

"We are nearing the Hanging Gardens. Perhaps let Assassin take care of her," suggested Caster as he did the same as the former.

"...Fine," she muttered as she followed through with it.

Meanwhile, as the other Rider flew down for another attempt, she had to veer out of the way when the dragon's tail suddenly got in her way. That huge blade at the end of the tail might have knocked them out of the sky at the very least should it hit them.

"Right, no attacking from behind then," the wyvern knight muttered as she circled around them as they neared the fortress. Suddenly, a purple sigil appeared in front of the flying fortress and shot out a large beam. Minerva dove to the left, narrowly missing the beam.

"Darn, they made it," she said with a hint of disappointment. However, perhaps it was well and good. It was just Minerva and her against three other Servants. It wouldn't do well for her to fall in this battle. Although... why was that fortress coming closer to the castle?

A blink of her eyes later, she spotted another group of those winged skeletons coming at her again. Sighing she shouted, "Alright, Minerva! We are needed! Let's go!"

* * *

Jack rushed down to the courtyard as fast as he could. He felt the castle shudder from the explosions outside. As he stepped into the moonlit area, he was shocked. Most of the defensive patrols had survived but at varying degrees of injury. Several had lost legs. Others lost hands. Some were lucky to escape with scrapes. Others were still bleeding through their bandages. As much as he expected grievous wounds such as these, but not to those on defense. He was in turmoil. His heart went out to them, they who had not got the chance to decide on their lives. Like him. It was then that his mind went back to the laboratory he escaped from. Many were still there, waiting to be batteries for the Servant's Noble Phantasms. He wanted to give them the chance to make a choice. A choice to live their lives the way they wanted. Even if they wished to continue serving their creators, it was their choice. And now... time to make his.

He went up to the nearest patrol leader and asked, "Could you get what's left of your patrol and follow me? I need your help with something." The female homunculi looked at him with a puzzled expression, but she still motioned over two of those under her and altogether, they went into the castle.

* * *

Lance crashed onto sword as Lancer of Black and Saber of Red pushed against the other's weapon as a show of their strength. At first glance, they were evenly matched. Both were skilled, but as the fight went on it came down to martial prowess against brute force. Lancer was highly skilled with his chosen weapon and wielded it with precision and speed while Saber fought like a mad thing.

With a cry, he pushed her off and extended his lance with the flick of a wrist, the blades on the side suddenly coming to life as they went for her exposed neck. Her face had the look of surprise as she hurriedly parried it away with a swing of her sword. As suddenly as it was extended, it also retracted and tried to pull her sword with it. She narrowly pulled it out of its hook and quickly materialized her armor, now wary of any tricks Lancer might pull off. Not a moment too soon. The Servant of Black leaped forward with a downward swing. She stepped to the side but he followed up with a spinning strike which she deflected. With a cry of her own, she burst forward and started swinging. Now he was on the defensive, dodging and deflecting the blows just as skillfully.

It was readable on his face, how he could feel the strength of her blows as he prevented injury to himself. Suddenly, he roared out and a golden aura enveloped him as he extended his spear yet again. She was able to avoid it by tilting a bit to the right, her shoulder avoiding injury. As she was about to point her sword at him, a clink of metal echoed behind her as the blades of the lance hooked onto a summoned standard that was planted into the ground. Her eyes went wide as he allowed himself to be pulled forward, his pauldron crashing into her stomach area. She was lifted up and tossed behind him as he lunged past her. Landing on his feet, he swung his lance in a scything motion as his downward strike moved towards her head. The breath knocked out of her, she was barely able to recover in time to raise her sword and block it.

Gritting her teeth, she pushed and swung hard, sending the lance aside while the momentum of the swing sent her twisting into the air and onto her feet. "What... the hell... was that..." she growled out as she stopped to catch her breath even as she went on guard.

"Demacia is with me even if I am so far away from home, close to my heart," he told her confidently as the blue and yellow flag behind him disappeared, along with the golden aura. His armor didn't escape that exchange unscathed, with the spikes on his left pauldron bent out of shape.

"Tch, fine you don't wanna say. I'll just beat you and be done with it." she snarled as she centered herself.

"Did I touch a nerve?" he asked as he went on guard as well, "You seem put off by the fact I love my people and my kingdom."

"..."

She willed her helm on and immediately charged in swinging with a shout. With a sharp grunt, he continued to fight back into a stalemate once more.

* * *

Assassin and Shirou looked on as the display showed the Gardens slowly moving into place, right above the castle. The great doors swung open and Archer, Rider, and Caster entered the throne room.

"Welcome back," he greeted as he came down the steps, "You are just in time to witness the next part of the plan."

"And pray tell, what sort of plan is it?" Rider asked with narrowed eyes.

"Stealing the Greater Grail from the Black Faction," he announced with a smile as he motioned at the display. The land shook as the inner grounds began the break apart. Soon, small floating islands and even pieces of stone from the inner walls were levitating as magic bored through into the deepest parts of the castle, soon revealing the Greater Grail.

"Cool shiny thing. Is that the thing we're supposed to be fighting over?" quipped Archer with a snicker.

"Yes, it is. Some warning, though," he cautioned, "Even if most of their Servants have taken to the field, there may be some who would hasten to return to stop us, so do see to our defense."

"Very well," muttered Caster curtly before leaving. Rider and Archer nodded before following suit. Assassin and Shirou were once again left alone in the throne room.

"It's all coming together quite well, Master," she commented.

"Indeed. Victory is in our grasp," he agreed as he turned his attention to the display, "Nothing can stop it now."

* * *

The car sped up the castle, the speed cutting abruptly and the vehicle itself drifted a bit to the right. The passenger door burst open and Sagara almost leaped out of it. His eyes went wide, almost bulging out, as he looked to the sky and saw what the castle was doing.

"Assassin, get me up there," he ordered. The Servant hauled him on the right shoulder, much to his surprise, and proceeded to run up the wall... and drop him on the top of the roof.

"Damn it! I am not a sack of potatoes!" he yelled at Assassin.

**:D**

"You have returned, Hyouma. You're quite late," Darnic stated from his perch on a higher roof.

"I tried my best with what I had," he protested weakly and the leader of the Yggdmillenia shook his head.

"What's done is done. Now, we have to stop this. Look," the Master of Lancer said as he looked straight ahead.

Sagara followed his view and his mouth fell agape. The sight of the Greater Grail floating up to the flying fortress took his breath away and he was unable to say anything about it.

"They will be returning soon," the latter informed him, "However, you are the first to arrive. It falls to you to enter first."

"Eh?"

"With the battles raging outside, some of the Masters of Red should be vulnerable. Take them out," he ordered.

The Master of Assassin then schooled his face and calmed down. "Alright. With Assassin by my side, we can make short work of them," he said as he accepted the orders. Carefully he slid down the other side of the roof and stepped on a large, floating boulder. As he went higher, he wondered what sort of things should he expect there.

"They fall to my blade./ No Master shall have mercy./ We bring them quick death."

**Commentary:-**

**Hello everyone. Welcome back to the next chapter of Doubtful Origin. So... I have no idea why someone guessed Mercy as Lancer of Red, but no it isn't. Lancer of Black, however, is quite correct.**

**Red Faction**

**Saber - still Mordred.  
Archer - Peacock from Skullgirls  
Lancer -  
Rider - Zero from Drakengard 3  
Berserker - Doomslayer from Doom 2016  
Caster - Miraak from Skyrim  
Assassin - still Semiramis**

**Black Faction**

**Saber - Nero from DMC5  
Archer - Mael Radec from the Killzone series  
Lancer - Jarvan IV from League of Legends  
Rider - Cherche from Fire Emblem  
Berserker - Senator Armstrong from MGS Revengeance  
Caster - The Ancestor from Darkest Dungeon  
Assassin - Zer0 from Borderlands 2**

**So, I took quite a while. I would have been done sooner but a moment of madness struck me and I spent the whole of last month... making FGO related rap battles. And since they are not fanfiction, I put them on Archive Of Our Own instead. If you wanna take a look, you can go there and type my pen name or Epic Rap Battles of Fate in the search bar. Anyway, back to the story.**

**Lancer of Red getting all the pressure from Saber of Black. The Battle of the Berserkers is still in deadlock, with Berserker of Black getting a little pissed at the assumption he came to. If I am not mistaken, due to the videos I watched about him, his eyes glow when he is nearing maximum output. What else has glowing eyes? Heh. Archer of Black bore witness to the carpet bombing of nonsense that Archer of Red threw down, which included real bombs. Then she, Rider and Caster of Red retreated back to the Gardens. Too bad Rider of Black and Minerva were unable to take anyone out. Jack doing Sieg things. Lancer of Black and Saber of Red still dueling. Shirou and Assassin partaking in a great robbery. Assassin of Black finally arriving at the scene and being the first intruder.**

**Alright, folks, that's a wrap. ****If you're able to, please leave a comment or a review after reading, would you kindly?**


	7. Berserk

**I do not own Fate/Apocrypha nor any other Servants depicted here.**

Berserk

Lancer grunted as he withstood Saber's sudden onslaught. He could feel her anger through her wild blows, making him wonder if he was fighting a Berserker. Avoiding another swipe, he extended the lance. She dodged to the side and sent a downward slash his way. He turned round to avoid it while swinging the lance in a scything motion. The blow knocked her back a little and before he could continue, she launched herself at him as if it hardly fazed her.

It was then Darnic suddenly spoke to him, "_You have to return, my liege. Caster of Red is using his fortress to steal the Greater Grail._"

The words almost froze him in place, yet he was still aware enough to lock weapons with his opponent. "_Hardly a good time to tell me this, Darnic. I am in combat with Saber of Red_," he thought as he pushed against her strength.

"_I have asked the others to notify their Servants_," his Master replied, "_We have yet to lose anyone, so we can still take the fight to them. I refuse to relinquish our only advantage_."

"_To be fighting in the enemy's territory without any knowledge of the area is unwise_," he replied as he finally pushed her off and went on his offensive, using controlled swings and jabs, "_Still, if this is what you recommend to do... then I shall make it happen. I shall put Saber of Red in dire straits before returning to aid the others_."

He began to flare his golden aura again as he made his move, leaping and sending a jab at her face. The blow was blocked by the flat of her sword, but he paid no mind to it as he leaped into the air again, much higher than before.

"DEMACIA!"

The lance slammed into her blade. The ground fractured and cracked under her. A shockwave of energy radiated out faster than the eye could see. With barely a warning, the earth moved. Huge blocks rose up immediately after the blast as the ground shuddered in upheaval. When the movement was done, the entire area around them turned into a natural colosseum. As he landed on his feet, he slammed the butt of his lance into her solar plexus. Stunned, she wasn't able to react as he spun around and kicked her in the chest, sending her flying into the earthen walls of the colosseum. After a moment's pause, he ran up the other side of the arena and ran up the wall. After a few steps, he leaped off and extended the lance, snagging the highest outcropping. He was able to pull himself up and the momentum carried him high enough for him to grab the jutting edge. Dismissing his weapon, he pulled himself up.

"Hey! Get Back here! We aren't done yet!"

He turned around to look down at the other Servant. She had recovered quickly and was now standing in the middle of the arena, pointing her sword at him.

"Your faction is attacking the castle. Should I not return to defend it?" he called out his question as she dismissed her helm, revealing her irate face.

"I have nothing to do with that!" she retorted hotly.

"Even so, I must return to defend it. May we meet again, Saber of Red," he wished her as he disappeared into motes of golden light, hastening his journey to the castle.

"Let me out of here first, you damned crown prince!"

* * *

Both combatants landed on their feet opposite each other. Slowly they circled each other warily, one more relaxed than the other. Their breathing was calm and collected, ready to react at an instance. And then, Saber of Black suddenly stopped to shout, "What is it now, lard ass?"

Lancer of Red blinked. Was he talking to his Master?

"Hey, I'm in the middle of a fight. You're interrupting," he spoke rudely. After a moment, he grumbled, "Alright... Fine, I apologize for snapping at you. But a little warning next time. This kind of crap could get me killed." He turned back to her, the conversation finished apparently, and said, "Sorry about that. It seems your faction has decided to raid the castle. I don't suppose you knew about that?"

She shrugged and replied, "I didn't really know? My Master only said to fight and win. I just aim to do just that."

"...My Master's asking me to finish this up and get back to help stop Caster's little raid," he said as knelt down and poked the tip of his sword in the dirt., "So, I intend to win this fight. No hard feelings?"

"None taken. Giving your all right now?" she asked, lowering her stance just a little to spring up to the air.

"In a sense," he replied with a smirk as he turned the handle of his sword twice. It sounded like an engine, strangely enough.

"Rawhide."

His right arm transformed; a metal claw arm attached to a metal forearm with a ridged surface, colored in blue, red and black. She furrowed her eyebrows slightly as he had never demonstrated this before. Is this part of his Noble Phantasm? Suddenly, he had already closed the distance between them.

_Fast_.

She blocked two of his slashes before going airborne. A little taken aback that his sword was on fire at that moment, she was still prepared and as he leaped after her, proceeded to divebomb him spear first to finally take him out of the fight. What she didn't expect was for him to slash twice; one to parry her spear, the other to slam her to the ground at an angle. As she crashed, she could barely hear him say, "Not done yet!" She felt something pierce her through the back and she was pulled, quite painfully, airborne again. She felt the flurry slashes to her back, feeling them breaking through her dragon mail and biting her skin. The onslaught stopped and as she felt herself freefall, she felt him crashing into her and slamming her on the ground. She tasted dirt. It wasn't very nice.

"Heads up!"

She felt something grab her back again; she was pretty sure it was that claw. She felt herself being swung and slammed on the ground three times. At the third impact, her body was released and she caught sight of him aiming his gun at her. It was then, she knew... and she resigned herself to her fate. He pulled the trigger. The slug entered her heart almost immediately. The force of the shot threw her to the ground a few feet away from her lance. She coughed a little as he approached. The metal on his arm seemed to flake off in glowing red.

"Well, that could've -cough- gone better," she muttered as her breathing heaved. She could literally feel her body breaking down, her eyes catching wisps of red dust rising. She made sure to look up at his face, stating, "You know, frowns don't make you... kinda makes me wish we're on the same side."

"Kinda wish that too... too bad then," he stated somberly.

"Hey, can you promise me something?" she asked with a grin, that last cough throwing up specks of blood on her lips, "We go grab a drink sometime -cough- if we ever meet again."

The side of his mouth twitched upward a bit. "Sorry, I'm spoken for," he apologized.

"Didn't mean it that way... -sigh- see ya around, pretty boy," she started but said her goodbyes as she finally disappeared.

* * *

"Berserker, you have to settle this quickly!" shouted Caules at the display that showed the battle between the Berserkers of both factions. Both Servants seemed to be evenly matched blow for blow. Even with his Berserker at full, the other Servant of Madness still went head to head with him, as if ramping up to match his output.

"_Maybe you can tell him to stand down then_," sneered his Servent through the connection as he continued to wail on Berserker of Red's defense, "_Or maybe, get him to show his full power. I feel like I'm being looked down on and it's pissing me off_."

"Do you need a Command Spell?" he asked as he watched the Red Servant duck under the latest punch and sent an uppercut at his Servant's chin. Berserker stumbled back with a grunt and a growl.

"..._Maybe I do need a boost. Up to you, son_," was the reply as he went at it again with a yell.

He grit his teeth as he continued to watch. With each second going by and the urgency to take back the Grail increasing, he made his decision. He raised his fist with the seals and declared, "By order of my Command Seal, defeat Berserker of Red!"

Small arcs of yellow electricity started coursing over Berserker of Black's body, his eyes gaining a glowing red color. The Servant grinned on the display, at the same time Caules heard, "_You've got guts, son. Alright! Let's do this!_" He watched the display in earnest, feeling a bit more confident of victory.

The Black Faction's Servant yelled as he swung at his opponent, who had suddenly stopped moving the moment the Seal was activated. Much to his surprise, his fist was grabbed just as he reached the helmet. He pushed as hard as he could but the armored hand was unmoving. It was like the Red's Servant had a jump in strength. It was then he noticed that the Servant was glowing red. As his hand was forcefully lowered, he could see the visor of the helmet had also changed. Instead of opaque, it now had a glowing red skull on it. He was suddenly pulled in and given a thunderous left hook, followed by a powerful right straight that sent him flying.

"Berserker..." Caules muttered. Truth be told, he barely interacted with his Servant, Berserker preferring to do his own thing. The Servant even spent more time with the homunculus than him. However, Berserker showed an image of a strong person who didn't tolerate any nonsense, emphasis on strength. What he saw on the display gave him a lot to be concerned about.

Berserker crashed into a wooded area, a line of broken trees in his wake and finally crashing into the side of a small cliff. He recovered quickly, shaking his head as he got up. He barred his teeth as he looked at the broken line. And then the other Berserker appeared in his line of sight. Now, he looked even more enraged. The Red Servant took a running leap at him while he stayed and lowered his center of gravity, preparing to counterattack. A gust came out of the boots and the other Servant went even higher. Berserker's mouth opened like he was shouting out as he swung his fist, which crashed into the descending boot and knocking it aside. His second swing grounded the Red Servant on his back. Berserker of Black then jumped and crashed onto his waist, then proceeded to rain blow after blow on the helmet. However, after several hits, his fists were punched aside and a hammer blow slammed into his chest. It sent him off the Servant and crashing into another tree.

The Black Servant landed on his feet as he slid on the broken bark, which helped him to avoid another punch that took out a rather large chunk of wood. He lunged and tackled the Red Servant but they only moved a few meters before he received a double axe handle from his opponent. Two in fact, after which he released his hold. He then got a forearm to the face followed by a blow to his temple. His head was then grabbed and a helmet crashed into his forehead. He stumbled back as he reeled from the impact. He was then grabbed by the shoulder and Berserker of Red started punching his chest repeatedly.

To Caules' shock, his Servant's hardened skin started cracking. Berserker of Black realized it too, as he pushed a punch aside and grabbed the other hand, wrenching it off his shoulder. Black chips fell off and revealed raw red skin that started to heal up as the Black Servant pulled as hard as he could. The ground cracked and cratered as the armored body withstood the impact. Both their eyes went wide in disbelief as the Red Servant got up like it was nothing.

"_Son, I don't think we can win this_," he heard through his link, watching as his Servant grit his teeth and charged, "_Help me wish Jack the best of luck. Looks like I won't be going home_."

His determined look was set as he glared at the display. Caules raised his clenched hand again and started, "Berserker of Black, by order of my Command Seal..." Right before his eyes, the Berserker of Red grabbed the former by the neck and plunged his hand into his chest. He pulled out a white beating heart and crushed it to a pulp. His Servant's body began breaking apart as the body was let go.

"_Damn, that guy was strong. Mighty glad I went through with it_," was his Servant's last thoughts as the black dust of his body in turn disappeared. He continued to watch as the red aura around the other Berserker faded out. He looked around for a moment before walking a few steps and shifting to his spirit form. Caules exhaled a breath he didn't know he kept in. He waited a moment to steady his racing heart before leaving his room to notify his sister.

* * *

Archer stepped off the floating bit of dirt while observing the place. Dark with minimal lighting. No matter, he had experience fighting in low light so it didn't bother him that much. Several minutes later, he could hear faint clicking around the nearest passageway. Eventually, the shifting shadows solidified into a troop of dragon tooth warriors. Wordlessly, he materialized a shotgun and waited patiently for the skeletons to arrive. As they came in range, he started unloading. Eight shots in all, and with the troop too near to avoid it, the majority of the skeletons shattered to pieces. He could hear footsteps behind him and several homunculi charged forward to tie up the survivors. Moments later, Lancer stepped up to his side.

"My Lord," he greeted, still maintaining his vigil even as the skeleton summons were mopped up.

"Archer," the latter returned the greeting, "Have you seen Assassin and his Master?"

"I have not," the former replied, wondering about the question.

The Servant of the Lance paused for a moment to consider his words. "Very well. We will fight and make our way forward to reclaim the Grail," he decided.

"I shall follow, my liege."

Both Servants turned around and found Darnic standing behind them.

"It will be dangerous," the lead Servant of the Black Faction informed his Master.

"I spent many lifetimes trying to reach the Root and with the aid of the Grail, it is now within my grasp," the magus declared resolutely, "I will not let the Red Faction steal it away after all my efforts. I will retrieve it personally if I have to."

Lancer smiled and said, "You are a brave man. Very well, do as you wish."

Darnic bowed. Turning back around, the Servant ordered, "Let us be off, Archer. We have a Grail to retrieve."

* * *

The earthen wall shook. Then it shuddered again. A third time, it moved and exploded outwards. Saber of Red took a few wary steps through in full armor. A growl echoed in the helm followed by the collapse of the summoned arena. She glanced behind her and her growl became fiercer with some added annoyance when she saw the rubble that remained.

"_Damn that Lancer. I'm gonna pound him in the ground the next time we meet_," she grumbled mentally as she started to walk towards the castle, dismissing her helm as she strode on.

"_You should hope that it happens soon, Saber_," quipped up Sisigou through their link, "_The longer the War goes on, it's likely that he might get taken out by another Servant_."

"Tch," she sounded, knowing that his words rang true. Still, Lancer was skilled. He should last long enough for her to find him.

As relaxed as she was, she wasn't stupid. She raised her sword and easily blocked a strike that seemingly came out of nowhere. "You'd have to do better than that if you want to defeat me," she stated simply, "Rider of Black?"

"Hello, Saber of Red. Apologies, but I'm afraid you can't go any further," said the mounted Servant as she circled around with her dragon gliding in the winds.

Kind of small to be a dragon, to be honest. A drake? Wyvern?

"Eh? Why not come down here and fight me? Or are you gonna play hit and run like a coward?" she taunted. Since she knew nothing about this Servant, why not lure her down and fight on even terms?

"My, my, what a rude little girl," the Servant replied chidingly, "Perhaps I should land and teach you a lesson, but I prefer my advantage."

"Tch," she sounded again and proceeded to guard herself again as Rider dove down on her again, the axe crashing against Clarent in a fly-by, "You are really pissing me off." The sword began emitting red lightning as she said that. She then motioned at the Servant of the Mount and shouted, "Alright, come and get me!"

"if you insist," was the reply before the Black Faction Servant dove down again.

With a yell, she launched herself at the diving mount, much to the other's surprise, while swinging her sword that was alive with crimson electricity arcing of its blade. Just as they were a few inches away from each other, she felt a tug on her back and she was pulled the opposite way with a sudden jerk. Her entire body crashed to the ground, driving dust into the air as she tumbled to a halt and landed feet first. With a growl, she looked around and caught sight of a smirking face.

"I had it handled, Saber," Rider said to the interrupter, "You didn't need to."

"Maybe you could have handled the attack. But... it could also have been super effective against you," he said as he shrugged.

"Well, I suppose we'd never know now, would we..."

This is just too much. She was being ignored like some ordinary squire. Her temper was rising quite rapidly until a voice of reason broke through.

"_Hey! Cool it. You're a future king, so keep it together_," Sisigou suddenly communicated through their link.

"..._Heh, you're right. It's unbecoming of a king to lose his temper so fast_," she replied back with an eager grin forming on her face, "_It seems I'll just have to teach them a lesson_."

She raised her sword, pointed at him and asked, "Hey! You're Saber of Black, right?"

The two looked at each other for a moment. "Yeah? What about it?" he asked.

"I am Saber of Red," she declared, "Come on, Servant. Show me what you got."

"Hn, I'm supposed to get back to the castle, you know," he stated as he glanced over to Rider. "But... you seem to be heading the same way, so I'd better stop you. I doubt Rider could do anything to slow you down, right?"

"Bet on it," she replied, still grinning.

"Well now, I..." he started but he stopped, a frown forming on his face. "What did I say about leaving the battles to me, lard ass?" he suddenly said as he glanced back to the castle. Turning to Rider, he asked, "Can you help keep an eye for interruptions up there?"

She gave a salute and rode off. "Now that we're done, I suppose we can start," he said as he reached for the sword on his back. He gripped the handle and twisted it a little. She could hear the sound of an engine being revved up. Cocking her eyebrow, she wondered what sort of sword it was. She then swung her sword, which crashed against his as he flew at her.

"Alright, let's do this, Red," he told her before the sword ignited before her very eyes.

Blood rushing in her excitement, she replied with equal measure, a lightning coated sword.

**Commentary:-**

**Hello everyone. Welcome back to the next chapter of Doubtful Origin. Here is the full list of Servants.**

**Red Faction**

**Saber - still Mordred.  
Archer - Peacock from Skullgirls  
Lancer - Aranea Highwind from FF15  
Rider - Zero from Drakengard 3  
Berserker - Doomslayer from Doom 2016  
Caster - Miraak from Skyrim  
Assassin - still Semiramis**

**Black Faction**

**Saber - Nero from DMC5  
Archer - Mael Radec from the Killzone series  
Lancer - Jarvan IV from League of Legends  
Rider - Cherche from Fire Emblem  
Berserker - Senator Armstrong from MGS Revengeance  
Caster - The Ancestor from Darkest Dungeon  
Assassin - Zer0 from Borderlands 2**

**Once more, I took quite a while. My apologies, my dear readers. However, rejoice, for we can go back to the story.**

**Saber of Red getting left behind by Lancer of Black. She looked quite angry. Imagine him using his ultimate and then lancing out of there, leaving you to be like a fish in a barrel. Then, Lancer of Red got killed off. With Saber of Black being recalled, well, he'd want to settle this in a way that there won't be a Round Three. ****The Battle of the Berserkers finally has a winner, with Berserker of Red getting even more pissed off than Berserker of Black. Archer of Black prepping a beachhead for the others to storm from and eventually joined by Darnic and Lancer of Black. Finally, we find that Saber of Red has broken out of the arena. Just in time for the arena to crumble to dust. Then, she runs into some fresh victors and proceeds to challenge Saber of Black to a fight. It's time for a Death Battle!**

**Alright, folks, that's a wrap. ****If you're able to, please leave a comment or a review after reading, would you kindly?**


	8. Garden

**I do not own Fate/Apocrypha nor any other Servants depicted here.**

Garden

Ruler ran up to the castle doors, which appeared to be torn off its hinges. She paused to look at the twisted metal and the splintered wood before hurrying through the entrance. She went past the large group of injured homunculi and leaped up to the roof. The pieces of earth were still rising up. She stopped to observe and caught sight of the bulky armor that was standing on the largest piece of floating land. Making a note on where the Servant was, she quickly hopped on the nearest piece and waited. Eventually, she reached the Hanging Gardens and straight into the Servant, who had somehow run all the way to her position and was now aiming a gun at her. Calmly, she stepped off her mini island and faced him.

"Berserker of Red, stand down. I only wish to speak to the Masters of the Red Faction," she told him as serenely as she could while also preparing to retreat if it didn't work out, "I promise I am not here to harm anyone."

He maintained his aim on her. She gripped her standard tightly and prepared to move. Thankfully, the Servant lowered his weapon and moved off.

"Berserker of Red," she called out, stopping him in his tracks. She continued with, "Could you take me to them?"

His helmet turned to glance at her and shook from left to right. The green armor then strode off into the shadows, disappearing from her sight. She sighed. She knew it was a little far fetched, but maybe another may help her. She closed her eyes and stretched out her senses. From what she could determine, there was a big group of Servants in a certain direction, a different path from the Berserker. She opened her eyes and hurried on her way. She needed to get to the bottom of this mystery.

Why was the Red Faction so adamant about removing her presence?

Were they doing it by their own free will or is something sinister controlling them? Something beyond the War?

As she neared the site, she could hear strange explosions going off in the distance. Another clash it seems. She quickened the pace. If possible, she needed to question the other Red Faction Servants and shine a light on this conundrum.

* * *

They had made good progress into the fortress. The strange skeletons were no match to Archer and Lancer. Whatever stragglers that remained were mopped up by the sole squad of battle homunculi that was brought along. That was until...

"Take cover!" shouted Archer suddenly as he ducked behind a support pillar. Lancer quickly pulled his Master with him. The squad was unlucky enough to be slow in their reaction as they were peppered with a laser barrage as they moved to the sides of the long hallway. Half their number fell. A loud cackle echoed down the long passage.

"Hi! What's up doc?" greeted a short girl with metal feathers sticking out of her spindly arms, flanked by a tall person wearing strange dark blue robes.

"Greetings. I am Caster of Red and this is Archer of Red. Welcome to the Hanging Gardens," the tall person said, "I am afraid that your path ends here."

"I am afraid that we cannot do," shouted Lancer in reply as he stepped out from behind the pillar, "You took the Greater Grail. We will take it back."

Instead of replying, Caster shouted, _"Yol Toor Shul_!"

A huge gout of flame was sprayed out, covering the hallway and leaving little room for advancement, sending Lancer back behind the pillar. The burst lasted for a while before dissipating. However, that brought enough time for Archer of Red's little scheme.

"Alright, George! New move! Attack of the Clones!" she announced gleefully as she pointed at the group in cover. From behind a corner, several cars housing a bomb with the number eight on it raced down the passage straight at them, riding past just as the flames stopped.

"These damned bombs again?" muttered Archer of Black as he leaned out and shot each car accurately with his handgun, causing several explosions that didn't even touch them.

"Hey! No fair!" his counterpart yelled in protest.

The Servant next to her shook his head and shouted something different, _"Fo Krah Din!"_

A great blizzard seemed to appear out of nowhere and barreled down the hallway.

"Alright, take this then!" she shouted and pointed at the group.

Once more, loud droning sounded from around the corner. This time, however, the bombs were riding small planes. As they flew over, she started sounding off a loud tune. Caster looked over to her quizzically.

"What? Never heard 'Ride of the Valkyries' before?" she retorted with a big grin.

"Annoying machines," grumbled Archer of Black as he shot those down too.

"We need to get past these two to get the Grail," muttered Lancer as he watched the developments unfold.

"Do you seek aid, Lancer?" asked a familiar voice from the pillar behind him. He and Darnic turned around to find Caster of Black.

"How did you... mages... If you have any means of combating these two, do so now," the crown prince ordered before turning his attention back to the skirmish.

"Damn it! Stop shooting down my boy George and blow up already!" yelled out Archer of Red as she pointed forward another wave, "I wanna get back to the T.V."

"...No," replied Archer of Black with professional calmness as he continued to shoot whatever planes and cars she threw at the hunkered down group.

"Perhaps you should get Darnic back to safety," proposed the old Servant as he assessed the situation, putting a hand to his beard.

Before Lancer could reply, cries of horror came out from the death throes of the remainder of the homunculi squad. His eyes narrowed. A woman in a... fashionable white dress, now slightly dirtied by blood splatter, stood among the dead.

"Rider! You made it!" cheered on Archer of Red as she waved, more planes droning past over her head.

"It seems we are caught between a rock and a hard place, my liege," spoke up Darnic, still maintaining his calm and composed manner even under this pressure.

"Very well, change of plan. Caster, take care of the other two. I shall deal with Rider," Lancer as he got out of cover and walked towards the Servant.

"Deal with me... Quite a brave one," Rider of Red stated, still in a relaxed stance, "Brave ones sometimes die first."

"That has yet to remain to be seen, Rider," replied the Exemplar as he readied himself for this fight.

"Take care of the other two... well, I certainly shall," said Caster of Black, inwardly letting loose a dark chuckle. His coat slowly lost the red hues, transforming into a sickly yellow color. A pale blue glow enveloped his hands as he stepped out into the open and he motioned at the nearest corpses, the ones that died to Archer of Red's lasers. Three bodies rose up, also sporting that same glow. They turned to face the enemy Servants and walked towards them. The blue glow slowly bulged out, forming cloth, leather and metal, making shields, armor, maces, and daggers. The two in front held up their shields while the third prepared to use the daggers.

Lancer lunged forward as Rider parried the tip aside. He halted the momentum and swung the lance the other way; she moved her sword in tandem and spun round in a half leap, landing on her feet. Pushing herself off the stone floor, she surged forward sword first. He was not taken unaware and moved his lance in the way. She tumbled forward and landed on his lance feet first, her sword raised. He steadied the lance and swung it round as his golden aura lit up around his entire body. While her sword moved faster, it couldn't go through the aura and she was forced to block the lance on the round way back. She let the force of the blow carry her through the air and planted both her feet on the stone wall. Pushing herself off, she moved forward for another attempt at his life.

"Get 'em, boys!" ordered Archer of Red as the bombing runs switched targets to the reanimated bodies of the homunculi. Explosions rattled the ethereal shields but the bodies inched forward, slowly but surely.

Lightning arced over Caster of Red's arms as he unleashed two bolts of electricity at both protectors but to no avail. "Hmph, what a peculiar necromancer Caster of Black is." he muttered as the lightning shorted out, "Perhaps I should make use of this..." A golden-tinged staff with a draconic headpiece appeared in his hand.

"Archer, allow me," he asked as he waited for the planes to stop. Then, he aimed the staff at the approaching bodies, "Feel the Agony of Mora." Beneath them, a black circle formed and black tendrils shot out and latched onto the reanimations. They began flailing around as the tendrils tugged and pulled them every other way. "Continue, Archer," he ordered.

"About damn time!" she cackled as she threw her arm forward, "Get 'em, boys!"

* * *

The latest blows drove them apart and they stood opposite each other with deep grooves in the ground. They were in a stalemate. Both of them favored big heavy swings. Saber of Black was more agile while Saber of Red pretty much weathered through everything that she didn't parry.

"Is that all you have?" she asked, giving him a toothy grin, "I can do the same thing you know."

He only smirked. Of course, he could. But like in the fight with Lancer, you can't really expect him to show all his tricks... not right away at least. "You want to spice things up? Sure," he replied with a smirk, "Buster Arm."

A large metal claw in silver and red materialized over his right arm. The blue highlights seemed to beat with power. Saber of Red raised a brow and muttered, "Eh?"

He dashed forward, taking advantage of her surprise and slammed the devil breaker into her face. He was not surprised when her head didn't snap back as per normal reaction. Still, being faster than her, he quickly grabbed her head and slammed it into the ground, breaking the earth. Without breaking stride, he swung his sword from the ground up and sent the armored Servant airborne. Leaping after her, he was surprised when she was able to swing around and bear her sword on him as he reached the apex of her ascent.

"Don't mess with me!" she yelled as she slammed her sword down on his defense. He landed on his feet and jumped back, avoiding her landing, the ground shattering and sending a lot of debris up.

As his feet touched the broken earth, he stepped forward in a flash and swung Red Queen from the side. Her quick reactions had already countered the blow, but that was already expected. At the same time, Buster Arm unlocked and extended with a crackle of blue lightning. He grabbed her free arm, off-balancing her while setting his sword on his back. His left hand grabbed her head in a hold and with both arms, lifted her up.

"Enjoy!" he shouted as he spun around 180 degrees and fell over backward, slamming her on the broken ground. He got to his feet, the devil breaker shattering and disappearing, and stepped on her pauldron, asking, "So, that better for ya?"

Without a word, she spun and got up, slashing once on the way. He leaped back and asked nonchalantly with a gesture, "What? Not satisfied?"

"Heh, I admit, that was a good try," she told him with a smirk, pointing her sword at him, "But I have a feeling you still haven't shown off everything yet."

He shrugged, not wanting to say otherwise. She was right, after all. He still had a trump card which he kept very close to his chest.

"Che, fine if you don't want to give this your all. I, however, will. That wish is mine and I will take it," she declared as her sword began glowing red. A second later, it shot a large beam skyward. He could feel the power that was coursing through that one beam. Power and anger. Not a healthy combination.

"Where I'm standing, you sound like a spoiled brat," he taunted, fully intending to get under her skin, "What, daddy didn't look at you enough?"

Her smirk turned furious and glaring. The beam sword started to look more unstable. Chaotic even. She definitely lost her temper quite fast. She raised the sword overhead.

"Clarent..." she chanted through gritted teeth.

"Gerbera," he called out. Glancing down, he smirked as he recognized which version he got. The red and white slat segments were quite familiar to him.

"...BLOOD ARTHUR!"

She slashed downwards, a great beam of red lightning surging towards him.

"Alright, you want more? I got more!" he shouted as the circular array of the breaker deployed. Thrusting it at the incoming attack, he fired a beam of his own, colored pure white. It grew larger as it tried to match the width of the blood-red blast, trying it's best to push back. It held for a moment, but he could feel it being pushed back.

"_Well, I think I can let loose a little bit_," he thought when he saw his own body slowly being pushed back by the blast. With a roar, he channeled out a bit more, blue ethereal wings faintly appearing on his back. The devil breaker held.

For now.

* * *

Darnic was puzzled. One moment, it was an all-out fight. The next, it was silent. No more droning planes. No more explosions. He peeked out from the pillar and looked both ways. Much to his surprise, all three Servants of Red were lying face down on the ground.

"That was rather... anticlimactic," spoke up Caster of Black as he motioned his possessed to stand down.

"What do you suppose happened?" asked Lancer of Black as he looked at his opponent warily, slumped over in a heap.

"Perhaps Assassin and his Master did something to their Masters," proposed Archer of Black as he got out of cover, "Regardless, we should kill them just in case."

"Enough."

The Servants and he turned around to find Ruler walking up to them. "If something happened to their Masters, then I hope it was just their Masters," she said calmly as she stood in front of them, "The remaining Masters of the Red faction still need to answer my questions."

"This is Faction business, Ruler. We do not need..." began Archer but was cut off.

"Very well, we will spare them for now," spoke up Lancer. Darnic stared at his Servant questioningly. The other two Servants did so as well.

"Our sole objective has been the retrieval of the Grail, has it not?" questioned the Servant of the Lance. Getting nods, he continued, "Then we have been delayed long enough. We should achieve our goal first and foremost. Let us hurry on and not tarry any longer." He turned and jogged down the hall. Ruler ran past them after him.

Inwardly, the Yggdmillenia leader smiled as he watched the other two Servants follow after his Servant after Caster dismissed his summons. Soon, the Grail will be back in his hands. Using Reinforcement on his legs, he ran and caught up with them, just in time for Lancer to called out, "Archer, take out the defenses!"

"Yes, my liege," he concurred as he skidded to a kneeling position and materialized a sniper rifle.

Very soon, the glowing animal heads on both sides of the walls started exploding as the group ran past each one. However, a thought struck Darnic. If Caster of Red's Master had been assassinated, then maintaining this floating fortress would eventually put a great strain on the Servant. The entire structure would eventually fall apart upon the Servant's death. With this troubling thought in mind, he hoped that they would have retrieved the Grail by then.

* * *

Sagara was not fond of combat. If anything, avoiding combat was a lot more beneficial to him. However, his Servant preferred it. How a battle maniac like his Servant ever got to be contained in the Assassin class was beyond his understanding. However, rather than trying to argue and disrupt Master and Servant relations, he allowed Assassin to fight back against whatever skeletons they encountered. They were unable to resist his Servant and that was fine, Spying on another magus or normal people was one thing. Sneaking on another Servant's fortress is a whole can of worms entirely. He was quite glad that they did not come across any of the other Servants. As capable as Assassin was, he'd rather be far away from the fight once it happens. After defeating the fourth patrol of Caster's skeletons they encountered, they found a strange suit of armor lying on the ground.

Assassin appeared and held him back, shaking his head. This puzzled him. "Servant?" he asked. He wanted to be sure. If it was, he was going to duck in the nearest room while he left his Servant to do his thing.

Suddenly, it began to move. Assassin quickly dragged him away, the nearest room only a few feet away. Inside, he leaned against the wall, his heart beating fast. "Well?" he sounded, his Servant peeking around the corner. His Servant then tapped his shoulder and motioned to follow. It seemed to him that Assassin wanted to tail the other Servant.

Quietly, they went across the way and peered around the corner, into the alleyway his Servant saw the other one went into. The green armored Servant punched down a doorway and entered a random room. The behavior puzzled him. What was the Servant doing? Did it know? Was it leading them into a trap?

"Assassin, go and look around. Lend me your eyes," he ordered.

The Servant of Murder nodded and shifted into what Sagara believed was his invisibility mode. He closed his own eyes for a moment and then reopened them. A little disorienting as he was looking at what he assumed was the interior of his Servant's head case. four bars in both bottom corners, each a different color. One small box in the top left corner all greyed out, with the words NOT AVAILABLE in its center. Right under the box were the words 'Spy on Servant' with a little checkbox on the side. Truly strange.

There were several people in the room slumped against the seats in the circular room, wearing all manner of clothing and accessories. He narrowed his own eyes. Were these the Masters of the Red Faction? If so, what happened to them? Why is the room full of smoke? The Servant seemed to be examining one of the hands and arms of the men. It clenched its fist and them stormed out of the room, Assassin quickly ducking out of the way as it stormed past.

"It is strange, Master./ Be careful of the smoke here./ Contents are unknown," his Servant warned him as he quickly moved to look through the door. His nose tingled as it caught the sickly sweet smell. He took a few steps back. He had to be careful. As his Servant noted, who knows what is inside the smoke. He didn't even know if it was magus-made or Servant-made.

"Assassin, do you think they are Masters?" he asked. A nod.

"Then... we should eliminate them," he stated. Taking out the majority of the Masters now would certainly ensure victory.

"Look underneath us./ Who is Caster's Master here?/ You know how to fly?"

It took a moment for him to understand. One of them would have to be Caster's Master. It was assumed that Caster made this fortress. If Caster was taken out of the picture right now, everything would come crashing down. With them on it. He would have to think up some other way.

"Do you see where the smoke is coming from?" he asked as he tried to peer into the room, "Can you remove it?" Seconds ticked by. then, Assassin ran forward and picked up a censer in the middle of a table at the center of the room. The Servant came out and threw it down the alley. It rolled out to the main walkway and a gunshot followed soon after, the green projectile hitting and dissolving the metal item. Sagara smirked and then turned to examine the room. He would let the smoke dilute first before heading in. Then, find out which one is Caster's Master without waking anyone up and hopefully swing this into their favor.

**Commentary:-**

**Happy New Year everyone. Welcome back to the next chapter of Doubtful Origin. So... two Servants lost already. The War rages on. Ruler shows up again, this time encountering Berserker. Thankfully, it isn't her time yet. She is not a demon, so at most, she gets a cursory glance. Black Faction bumping into Red Faction. Lots of fighting. Then, taking a break to see the battle of the Sabers. Some swordplay. Some wrestling. Some taunting. Saber of Black has no idea of the nerve he struck when he said that. Then, back to the clash of the factions. Ruler stepping in. No biggie. Walking down the road leading to the chapel. They just don't know it yet. Finally, we look to see what Assassin of Black and his Master is up to. Yes, they did stumble upon Berserker. He recovered quite fast though, I think. Yes, they did stumble upon the poison room where the other Masters are. And yes, everyone is still under the assumption that the fortress belongs to Caster of Red. Normally, they'd be right. Currently? We'll see.**

**Alright, folks, that's a wrap. ****If you're able to, please leave a comment or a review after reading, would you kindly?**


	9. Salvation

**I do not own Fate/Apocrypha nor any other Servants depicted here.**

Salvation

Rider soared through the air calmly. Strange enough, there was no other Servant she could see except for the two Sabers. She was quite puzzled. However, she doubted anyone would dare get between the two. And there were none of the strange flying skeletons she fought twice over. So, she decided to swing by the castle to look over the place. The strange fortress seemed to be moving away and she did catch something shining slowly going up. Was that the Grail? Even stranger, her Master hasn't said a single word through their link. Quite strange indeed. Was she still feeling morose at not getting the Servant she wanted? Perhaps she could cheer her up later. Maybe introduce her to Minerva.

At that thought, she smiled. Then, her mind wandered to Jack. She was quite amused when he came back to tell her about his training session with Berserker. He had a bit more life behind those worried eyes of his.

"Perhaps I should check on him," she muttered softly. A moment later, she called out, "Minerva, to the castle."

A roar of affirmation later, she was flying over the Black Faction's base of operations. The fortress had moved on and already a distance away. She circled around, going lower and closer to the parapet and noticed someone familiar carrying something wrapped up with the help of others. Jack looked up and waved at her. She waved back with a motherly smile as she flew past.

"_He seems to be doing well. Why, he's even helping out the other homunculi. Such a good boy_," she thought to herself, feeling a little proud of him.

However, she was not the only one to have caught sight of him. Celenike got up from her seat and hurried out of her personal room. She walked straight to Fiore's room and knocked. Getting verbal permission to enter, she opened the door and announced, "We have to get the other Masters. We may have a problem."

* * *

"So, I suppose I have to get started then," muttered Sagara as he pulled out a ritual knife from the inner pocket of his jacket.

"A moment, Master./ Do hear out my suggestion./ Kidnap all Masters."

He blinked. Why in the world is his Servant suggesting this? "Explain," he ordered.

"Taking all present./ Threaten other Servants too./ Winning faction War."

To be honest it sounded true enough. But...

"You do realize they called this a 'War', right?" he snarked as he stepped to the nearest magus, "I don't see why we should take them all instead of just taking Caster's Master and killing the rest."

"Strange."

The knife stopped moving. "What now, Assassin?" he grumbled out. He just needed a bit of blood for the small detection ritual. Why all the disturbances?

"Berserker left them./ He did not take anyone./ Are they still Masters?"

Good point... but... even if they were not Master's anymore, they could still be made Master's again, so it would be best to eliminate them. And so, he continued to move to the nearest magus.

"Count."

Count? What is this Servant talk-

"Wait... there are supposed to be seven Masters... There are only five here," he muttered as he scrutinized the place. He picked up the magus' hand and noticed faint scaring on it... as if something had been taken away. "So it is safe to presume they aren't Masters anymore... but that means..." he muttered in thought, "The other two Masters have taken their Seals, or maybe even one Master took all of them... but, there is no way an ordinary magus can sustain all seven Servants by their lonesome.

"Information."

He glanced over to his Servant and after a pause, said, "You want to get information out of them?"

A nod.

He sighed and groused, "I suppose it makes sense. I can't really see the point of doing my magecraft here in Caster's territory. Not if it would bring all eyes on me. But to bring everyone out?" He looked around the small room and observed. The room was out of the way and far from the center of the flying fortress. So... it is possible that there might be a way for the occupants to escape the place should the entire thing be compromised. Therefore...

He pricked a finger and deposited the knife back in his jacket. Quickly, he drew out a rough array on both sides of his opposing hand before the blood congealed. A minor thing. Muttering a few words and utilizing his circuits, the array hummed and glowed. He then picked a side and started waving that hand over the wall. Eventually, he felt a buzz and he pressed down on a brick. Without warning, the whole room was filled with white light.

When the light faded, he found himself sitting on the ground. He was a little surprised to feel the earth with his fingers. The other former Masters were sprawled around in front of him, peacefully unconscious. His Servant? Was still standing, in the middle of all this.

"At least we are relatively unharmed," he muttered as he started to get to his feet, but a metallic click froze him in his spot while feeling a cold metal thing pressed against his head. Slowly, he turned his head around to steal a glance behind him.

"Hey there, mind telling me why you suddenly appeared here, with the Red Faction Masters?" asked a large, menacing guy with sunglasses. The metal thing was a sawed-off shotgun. He then glanced up and stated, "Oh, and tell your Servant to back off. If I hear that gun fire, I'm pulling the trigger too."

He turned to face front and saw that his Servant had materialized a gun as well. It was a revolver, red in color.

"Well?" the Master asked.

He let out a breath. Even if this was an unexpected twist, he had to find a way to get out of it. Unfortunately, this guy had a reputation and nowhere in there mentioned a reasonable magus. And now that he got a better look at the other Masters now that they were out of that room, they have their own reputations too. He was thanking his lucky stars that they were incapacitated at the time. Now...

"Fine. Assassin, stand down," he relented. The Servant immediately lowered the gun.

"Right. How about that explanation?" he asked again.

Sagara sighed and proceeded to tell him how he ended up there.

* * *

The set of double doors was flung open and Lancer and Ruler dashed inside, ready to retaliate. When the room seemed devoid of life, they relaxed a little. It was a grand room, illuminated by great torches by the side of the walls and moonlight streaming through the stained glass at the far end of the door. The glass had clear religious motifs on them. Underneath it was an altar of some sort. Two great flights of stairs leading up coming down from both sides of the room. Darnic followed after the Servants, Caster and Archer coming in after him, both making careful observations of the room.

"The Grail is not here, and yet why does it feel like there is something off about this place?" Darnic muttered aloud.

"You have every right to feel that way, Darnic Prestone Yggdmillenia," spoke out a voice. Footsteps could be heard descending down from one of the flights. Everyone was immediately put on guard.

"Who are you? Are you one of the Masters of Red?" challenged the magus.

"I am. Yet, this is not the first time we meet," replied the unknown voice.

Puzzled, he waited patiently for the owner of the voice to step into the light. "What!? That's impossible!" he exclaimed in shock, "It can't be. How are you alive!?"

"Please. You are alive, thus so am I," the white-haired man in priestly vestments replied calmly as he came to a stop in front of the altar, "What is so strange about that?"

"Darnic, how do you know him?" questioned Lancer, glancing to the side.

"He is from the Fuyuki Holy Grail War," growled out his Master, "A Servant!"

"What!?" exclaimed the other Servants of the Black Faction.

"You must be the reason I was called forth," stated Ruler as she stepped forward, "You are of the Ruler class as well. Why are you breaking the rules of this War?"

"The rules... if I were so bound by the rules, then I could not help anyone," he spoke with a regretful face that gave way to a steely determination, "So I shall break those rules if it would assist me in achieving my dream. None shall stand in my way."

"What are you after, Amakusa Shirou Tokisada?" she responded in kind, revealing his true identity.

"Is it not obvious?" he declared with a smirk, "I wish to save all of mankind, Jeanne d'Arc. The salvation of humanity."

"As one of the Ruler class, it is our duty to help those living in this world when we are allowed to," she asserted, "Yet, you deviate from that with your actions, trying to force salvation on humanity when such a thing does not truly exist."

"If not, then why was I reincarnated in the War sixty years ago!" he fired back, "I refuse to back down after coming so far. Anyone who opposes me will be gotten rid of."

"These are not the actions of a Heroic Spirit, Amakusa Shirou," she replied as she stared resolutely.

"It is as you say, Jeanne d'Arc. My actions are neither of a saint nor are they heroic," he agreed as he mirrored her actions, "However, if I can bring forth the miracle of salvation to humanity, I will do it."

Lancer and Archer took a step forward, but Darnic raised his hand. They looked at him and he shook his head. He was content to let the Ruler Servants confront each other. If he can have time to figure out his opponent, all the better.

"And what of the other Masters of Red?" she continued to question.

"They already fulfilled their purpose, so they are not needed anymore," he replied.

"Just what did you..."

"Do not fret, Ruler," spoke out a Servant of stunning beauty that materialized, "Or are you saying he is going against the rules?"

"Queen of Assyria. World's oldest poisoner. Are you the Assassin of Red? Semiramis," she asked.

"Indeed."

"Are you his accomplice? Or is this all part of your plan?" she pressed forth.

"You think I was the one who led my Master down this path? You are a bit off, Ruler," Assassin of Red explained, "I am a Servant who is just following my Master."

At that moment, hurried footsteps were heard coming behind them. Archer, Rider, and Caster of Red entered the room and grouped up on the side.

"You had best tell us what is going on, priest," demanded Rider with an annoyed tone, "Why did we feel like we changed Masters?"

Semiramis made to retort but Amakusa held up his hand and replied in her stead, "Indeed. A moment ago I had a peaceful conversation with your Masters... and they agreed to hand over all their Command Seals to me. In other words, I, Amakusa Shirou Tokisada, am now Master of all Servants of the Red faction."

"How the heck did you become a Servant?" asked Archer of Red after a pause.

"An interesting development," said Caster of Red, "I, for one, am curious as to where this would lead."

"Why are we supposed to accept your leadership, Ruler?" Rider of Red continued to demand, "Our former Masters are the ones who went through all the effort to summon us, as useless as they are. What right do you have to command us?"

"I will answer all your questions later, Servants of Red," he replied calmly, "If you would please be patient until then." The Red Servants glanced at each other and silently moved to stand with him. Then, he turned to the Black Faction and continued, "Regarding the conflict between the Black and Red factions. I propose this. Surrender here and now the three of you. Jarvan the Fourth. Mael Radec. The Ancestor of the Heir."

"I refuse. A Demacian does not go back on their word."

The former Ruler turned his eyes to Archer of Black.

"You know better than to ask. My place is with my leader and my Master."

"And you?" he asked Caster of Black.

A blink. An unnerving smirk appeared. "A question. How do you intend to save humanity? It must be near impossible of an answer for you to need the Grail," the Servant queried in return.

"It is."

"Such a grand design," the Black Servant of Magecraft with a strange eagerness in his voice, "I must agree with Caster of Red. I am curious."

"Caster. Do not..."

"I cannot help it, Lancer," the latter admitted easily, "One such as I have an unending thirst for knowledge, be it forbidden or otherwise." He then proceeded to step aside, away from his group and faced them, "I will join them. You will be unable to stop me."

"You will pay for this betrayal, Caster," spoke up Archer of Black as he materialized his pistol. However, it was shot to smithereens by a cannonball.

"Nope. I haven't decided on the change of management, but now is my turn to bust your weapons," Archer of Red gleefully said as she kept that portable cannon pointed at him.

"My liege, I advise retreat," spoke up Darnic after having been silent this whole time, "With six Servants against three, I doubt we can gain a victory without casualties."

"Then, I am afraid I cannot let you go, Darnic," Amakusa declared, "If you stand against the salvation of humanity, then you should be removed. You, Ruler and the other Servants of Black will fall here in Assassin's Gardens." Looking at Caster of Black, he requested, "I know we haven't made a contract, but could you lend us your aid?"

"Certainly," the old Servant replied as he raised his hands and clenched, now aglow in a red aura. Two figures draped in black robes materialized, blocking the door and the only exit of the room.

"Tch, between a rock and a hard place," muttered Lancer of Black as he readied himself and his lance.

"It has been an honor serving you," stated Archer as he brought forth a rifle and aimed it at the robed figures.

"Amakusa Shirou, this is folly," protested Jeanne, but she readied herself as well to fight their way out.

"I am sorry, but..."

A loud boom interrupted him. One of the robed figures shuddered, as if in pain. Another boom caused it to collapse into a bloodied heap. The second robed figure turned around to face this new threat and opened the front of the robe. Berserker of Red stepped out of the shadow and grabbed something. A human spine with a sharpened tip, protruding from a heap of writhing red flesh. He smashed his other hand into the spine, breaking it off. He then stabbed the pointed end into the center of its mass and walked past its crumpling form.

"Ah, you made it back, Berserker of Red. Doomslayer," Amakusa greeted.

Berserker took one glance at everyone and proceeded to summon a pistol and aimed it at the former Servant.

"Berserker, think twice about your actions, I will not suffer-" warned Assassin but before she could finish, he pulled the trigger and shot once. A shield of snake scales appeared in front of her Master and absorbed the shot. Her eyes went wider when she saw that it somehow burned a hole right where her Master's head would be. If he shot a second time, her Master would have expired.

"Berserker, please stand down," Amakusa said as he attempted to persuade the Servant of Madness, "The Black Faction wishes to stop me from pursuing humanity's salvation. Even Caster of Black has decided to join hands with my efforts."

"Do not be tricked by his words, Berserker," called out the present Ruler, "As well-meaning as his ideal might be, the dead should not be the ones to lead the living."

The Servant kept staring at the priest. For a moment, nobody moved, all wondering who will he side on. Each one hoping that they had been convincing enough to gain his aid. The energy pistol dematerialized.

"I am glad that you see reason, Ber-"

The words died in his mouth when a rocket launcher appeared over his shoulder. Before anyone could recover from the shock, he aimed at the ceiling and fired. Which in turn, got everyone reacting.

"How dare you!" yelled Assassin. She quickly covered the top of their heads with snake scales to prevent the ceiling from burying them.

"Retreat," yelled Lancer and almost immediately, the rest of the Black Faction and Ruler ran towards the exit. Berserker turned after them when they had cleared the room.

Archer of Red laughed. Caster of Red looked up in surprise. Rider quickly dashed forward with the intent of hunting them down. She caught sight of a strangely shaped thing bouncing at her and was taken aback by the explosion that followed, throwing her back into the room. Meanwhile, Caster of Black gestured with his hands and grasped the air, both hands now glowing orange.

* * *

As the Black faction ran down the corridor with two new allies in tow, they were halted by a cry of disbelief. Spinning around, they found Darnic being pulled away from the group by glowing, orange tentacles that seemed to sprout from the ground itself. It speedily entangled his limbs and sought to trap him there, now moving around his face to silence him. They only seemed to be preventing him from moving and not constricting him. Lancer dashed after him, intent on freeing his Master but was now blocked by numerous chains launching themselves from the pillars and the ground itself. The other Servants moved to intervene but Lancer held up his hand.

"I shall remain. The rest must leave," he declared sternly, "He is my Master, and so my responsibility. They will not be so quick to kill him while I am here. You, however, must return to the castle and warn everyone of his betrayal."

They looked at each other and then to the appointed leader of the Black Faction. "You will die here, my liege," said Archer.

"A certain fact," agreed the former, "It has been an honor serving with you."

"Very well," replied the latter. Turning to the others, he shouted, "Move out. Back to the castle."

As they continued to race down the path, Lancer turned around and glared at the chain barrier. "FOR DEMACIA!" he roared as he leaped at it, bringing down his lance with his full might.

* * *

"_Oi, Saber, I found out something interesting_."

"_Not... right now_," she hissed back, her full concentration on her Noble Phantasm, "_I have... a Saber of Black to kill._"

"_Well, it seems that almost all the Masters of the Red Faction have suddenly appeared in front of the car, along with a Master of Assassin of Black._"

"Eh?" she muttered. The beam of red light faltered a little as her mind shook with minor surprise.

"_And after some questioning, it seems when he discovered them, they had their Seals taken. I have a hunch that the priest has betrayed us_."

"_Che, like begets like. I'm not surprised_," she replied, recollecting her composure and maintaining the beam, "_Want me to finish this guy off and get on that flying castle_?"

"_Talking about Assassin? Heh, no need. It's already flown ahead and he also said most of the Black Servants are there... Still, I think we need to find out what else happened up there. You think you can stop fighting for a moment and ask that other Saber for a truce_?"

"What? Oi, what are you talking about?" she retorted out, both aloud and through her link, even stopping the beam and stepping aside. The opposing beam fired past behind her for a few seconds before dissipating.

"_I'm saying that our worst suspicions have come true. That we were right to mistrust that duo at the church. Somehow, that priest has gotten hold of their Command Seals and is now in control of all the other Servants of the Red Faction. I rather not go in fighting blind if I can help it. If we can make use of their help, we might just make it out on top_."

"Oh, why didn't you say so!" she fired back with a smirk. Turning back to face Saber of Black, she found him on one knee in his original place. The metal contraption on his hand had disappeared and it sounded like he was regaining control of is breathing.

"Why'd you stop? I thought you wanted a good fight?" he asked with a mirrored smirk.

"If you wanna continue getting beaten up, I'm all for it," she taunted, but soon cleared away her own smirk, "But something came up and my Master is asking for a truce. Care to relay that message?"

**Commentary:-**

**Happy Lunar New Year everyone. Welcome back to the next chapter of Doubtful Origin. We start off with Rider of Black getting Jack in trouble. Then, we move part of the timetable forward a bit and do a bit of rescuing. And as we saw earlier, a faceful of shotgun is never a good thing. Then, we have the confrontation at a chapel of sorts. At least I think it is. Darnic has extended his life expectancy for the moment since he didn't get Vlad. Confrontations. Revelations. Everything out on the table. The betrayal that happened with eldritch accompaniment. And this time, the cavalry comes in the form of Berserker of Red. Nothing that a rocket can't fix, eh? However, as the retreat commences, the sole Master-Servant pair was entangled. Will they survive? Then, Saber vs Saber ending unexpectedly. And there was much confusion here.**

**Alright, folks, that's a wrap. ****If you're able to, please leave a comment or a review after reading, would you kindly?**


	10. Divulgence

**I do not own Fate/Apocrypha nor any other Servants depicted here.**

Divulgence

The present Masters of the Black Faction were taken aback at the sight. Every pod had been broken into and its contents now out and recovering in the open night air. And the culprit who started all this was standing there staring at them with all the calm in the world.

"What do you think you're doing!?" shouted Gordes, "Just because you were picked up by Berserker doesn't mean you can do as you please! These homunculi are supposed to supply energy to the Servants. Who gave you permission to set them free!?"

"I decided that for myself," Jack replied resolutely, "I have been given a chance to live and forge my own path. I only wish to give them that same choice."

"Don't give me excuses!" the former retorted angrily, "We made them! We made you too! Homunculi do not have free will! They were made to follow ours!"

"They can also think for themselves," the latter fired back calmly, "I can think for myself. I can make the choice to follow my own way. Who's to say the others can't do the same?"

"Why you-"

"Uncle Gordes," Fiore spoke up, halting his imminent tirade. She then addressed Jack, "Is that truly your desire? To give them the freedom to choose their own path? To accomplish something without needing direction?"

"Yes. Even if the future is uncertain for them, they still have the right to choose," the homunculus affirmed convincingly, "I admit, I don't even know my own future, as short as my life would be. Perhaps all that awaits me is hardship and despair. But... I still want to make the most of it. I want to live my life the way I decide to live it. No matter what happens, I will face my future with all my strength."

She looked at his determination in amazement.

"What kind of excuse is this?" yelled Gordes as he waved his fist at the wayward homunculus, looking like he was about to explode at any moment, "You dare demand your freedom!?"

"Please! Count to ten, Uncle," called out Caules as he put his hand on the older man's shoulder.

"Is she really considering this?" asked Roche softly after sighing and rubbing his head.

"Let them continue. I don't think I've found this much amusement in my dungeon before," muttered Celenike to him with a smirk on her face.

Fiore suddenly jolted upright in her seat. "Please wait, everyone," she announced, prompting a sudden silence. She put a hand to her ear and continued, "Archer, please repeat that."

* * *

"Be advised, Master. Caster has betrayed us. Darnic has been captured and Lancer sent us ahead while he retrieves him," Archer spoke through his link as he watched the fleeing fortress. Looking back to ground level, he continued, "All is not lost. We have also gained new allies."

"Let us go to the castle, Archer of Black," Jeanne told him as she and Berserker walked up to him.

"What of him, Ruler?" he asked, staring at the armored Servant.

"He will be coming with us," she stated as she glanced over to him. Turning back to the other Servant, she continued, "Right now, Shirou Amakusa has thrown the War into disarray. It falls to us to right this wrong and I refuse to turn away any assistance."

"Very well, Ruler. Let us be off."

* * *

As Fiore repeated what she had learned to those present, Gordes reached for his ear as well. Then, he grunted, "Hmph, Saber has said the same thing." This caused everyone to look at him. He explained, "Saber of Red's Master relayed a message. He encountered the rat and got some strange story. He believes Assassin of Red's Master has taken over the War and is now pursuing his own ends. The Master is also bringing some... guests."

* * *

"So, how is it back there?" asked Sisigou as he did his best to drive the beaten-up car he had back to the castle. He glanced into the rearview mirror as he asked the question, the other Master of Black. Nestled in the middle of the seat, flanked on both sides by the male Masters while Rum was strapped to the shotgun seat by the seatbelt.

"...Fine," the guy grumbled as he squirmed slightly at the uncomfortable arrangement.

Sisigou smirked and remarked, "Don't worry. We'll be at the castle soon enough."

Incoherent mumbling ensued.

* * *

Lancer was thrown back with the sudden blow that he blocked reactively. "Rider, out of my way," he growled out.

The lone Servant put a hand to her hip while saying, "Hello again, Lancer. This time, no interruptions. This time, you die."

She lowered her body and lunged forward, swinging wide arcs three times. The first two laid glancing blows against the lance, the third was held in place and pushed back against. He swung and forced her back, then stabbed forward with precision with a great yell. She skidded backward, but was able to catch herself and ducked under the stab. Pushing herself forwards, she dashed under the lance but was unable to go further as a standard suddenly dropped in front of her. She halted her momentum with her sword, and that gave him time to try and slam the lance on her head. She rolled to the side and returned the attack with a stab of her own. He avoided it by leaping back and thrusting his lance forward and extending it. She twisted to the side, neatly avoiding it and caught sight of the blades of the lance hooking the standard. Guessing what was going to happen next, she leaped into the air just as Lancer surged forward and missed the shoulder check.

At the apex, her weapon glowed and disappeared as she switched to a claw weapon. With a burst of power, she surged forward and slammed into his back with a flying kick. He was still on his feet, only being pushed forward against the standard. He turned and swung around the lance simultaneously, but she ducked under and attacked him with a flurry of blows, followed by a swipe of the claw that sent a blast of energy to his chin. His head snapped back and in his daze, Rider took the chance to continue, punching him twice in the chest and kicking his thigh. A feinting spinning kick, then a slash to his stomach ground against his armor, followed by an empowered punch to the solar plexus and a flying heel kick converted to a side kick. Crouching slightly, she spun around, each kick sending the both of them into the air, ending with a great flourish. As he began to fall, she burst down with another flying kick that sent him spiraling to the side and crashing to the stonework floor while she landed on her feet.

Very slowly, Lancer of Black picked himself up, propping himself up with his lance. His armor was quite battered in the onslaught and he seemed to be breathing heavily. He looked to where his Master was still entangled. Used to be, as Darnic had vanished. The chains. The writhing tentacles. Gone. Before the shocked Servant could muster a word, something crashed into the pillar next to him. Glancing down, he could only see a large glowing blade before his head toppled over the side. The huge greatsword was dismissed by Rider of Red as Lancer's body broke down into golden motes of light before dissipating, while she muttered, "Like I said before, this time, you die."

With that, she headed back to the throne room. She wanted answers and by hook or by crook, she was going to get them.

* * *

After dismissing Minerva, Rider quickly sought out the young homunculus. She found him in one of the many hallways in the castle, tending to the injured. Catching sight of her, he stood up and said, "Rider?"

"Hello, Jack," she greeted him, then she strode over and hugged him. "I'm glad you're safe, young man," she said with relief. Breaking the hug, she held on to his shoulders and continued, "Still, it looks like you're doing well for yourself."

He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, "Yea... I guess you can say that." Dropping his hand, he continued, "I hope you're alright Rider. I did... free all the homunculi..."

She sighed and let go, "I'll be fine. Minerva is fine too. We are together in this as one, so it isn't too much of a hassle to keep her around during a little fight."

"Jack."

The two looked around and found Ruler and Berserker of Red walking up to them. He almost took a step back but his nerves held and he greeted in return, "Er, hello, Ruler. Who is this...?"

"This is Berserker of Red... and I'm afraid that..."

"I take it he killed Berserker of Black," interjected Rider. The former nodded.

"I suppose that is only fitting... but why is he here? And why are you here, a Ruler class Servant?" questioned the wyvern knight.

"I will be addressing this later when everyone convenes," she explained briefly, "However, I can say that this War does not just involve the Masters and Servants anymore. It involves humanity itself."

* * *

"Are they secure?" asked Fiore as she looked up to her Servant. She had called him and Gordes to meet her in the library, her Servant and the most senior of the Masters of Black.

"Yes, all five are secure in the dungeons. Permission to speak freely," he requested. She nodded.

He continued, "I am surprised that Master allowed us to do so. Weren't they supposed to be allies?"

"This whole War stopped making sense tonight," grumbled Gordes, "Darnic and Lancer have most likely perished. Caster betraying us. Losing Berserker."

"All is not lost. Ruler is here on our side as well as their Berserker," reminded Archer.

"Che, can we even trust that Servant? Sure, you say he helped everyone escaped..." retorted the older magus.

"That he did. He could have helped the Red Faction and nobody would have escaped. And instead of being only down Berserker, we would be down four Servants and one Ruler," the Servant fired back.

"And we are grateful for his help," interrupted Fiore, "Surely you understand that we were once on opposing sides. That sort of suspicion can't be put aside easily."

"Understandable," agreed her Servant, "Ruler will want to brief everyone in the morning. I hope we can form a plan to take back what was stolen, Master."

* * *

"How is our guest, Caster?" asked Amakusa with a serene smile, "I don't suppose you mind me calling you that?"

"As secure as can be, thanks to her Highness," replied the old Servant as he stroked his beard, "And please, I do not mind at all. It wouldn't do to have you call me by my title in life. My true name was lost to time, after all."

"And Lancer has been taken cared of," Rider of Red stated as she walked down the carpet with the other Servants and stopped a couple of meters away, "Time for you to make sense, Amakusa."

"My, straight to the point, I see," he spoke calmly.

"Hey, don't forget about us," quipped Archer of Red.

"Indeed," agreed Caster of Red.

"Very well, what do you want to ask? And if you are wary, I will assuredly answer truthfully," he said freely.

"I suppose the first one would be where are our Masters? And how is it that you were able to become ours?" asked the Caster.

"The Seals were given freely, though it took some persuasion. Such was the nature of the poison used," the former Servant explained, surprisingly without any interruption, "As for the Masters themselves, somehow they were kidnapped."

"They were. Some of my dragon tooth warriors fought a Servant that I presume to be Assassin of Black," added Semiramis.

"How did you get to become a Servant?" asked Archer immediately.

The priest chuckled a little and replied, "If you were referring to the first time, I was a legendary figure. As for this War, I reconnected with the Greater Grail and restored as a Ruler."

"Are we going to have our wishes as well, o Ruler?" asked Rider, sneering out his class name.

"Of course you shall. All of you will be able to use the Grail for your wishes," he declared. Then, he asked, "Speaking of wishes, do you mind if I ask of yours, Zero?"

"Hmph, I wish to save my homeland from destruction," she promptly replied.

"Well, such a grand wish for such a Servant," commented the Assyrian Queen.

"There is no difference between a grand or simple wish," her Master said.

"Well said. Be sure to keep that leash on your snake or I'll be having a new pair of shoes for myself," Zero taunted mockingly.

"Why you-"

Amakusa held up his hand, shaking his head. As his Servant backed off, he asked Caster, "What of your wish, Miraak?"

"I wish to undo my fate," the spellcaster stated as he clenched his fist in front of him, "I will gain the victory I so rightfully deserve."

"I see," was his reply. To Archer, he directed the same question, "What about you, Peacock?"

It was surprising to see the grin melt away from Archer's face. "I want to wish away a calamity in my town," she said somberly, "I won't ask to change history, but I wanna make sure that there will be no occurrences like that in the future."

"A fine wish," was his response. And then he glanced over to Caster of Black and asked, "What is your wish, Caster?"

Chuckling, the old Servant replied, "Easily said. I merely wish to aid you in fulfilling your wish. Nothing more, nothing less."

"Oh? Not wanting to change your fate or one of your so-called grand designs?" asked the poisoner curiously.

"Ah-ha, nothing of the sort. What I have done is already set in stone. What I want... can be fulfilled with the passage of time," the former regaled with a grandfatherly smile, "The now is more important, don't you think? Please, tell us your plan to save humanity, Amakusa"

"Thank you, Caster," said the white-haired priest gratefully, "And yes, it is time that I tell everyone my plan to save humanity."

* * *

"The salvation of mankind?" Gordes said in disbelief before laughing.

"Yes. That is the true goal of Shirou Kotomine, also known as Amakusa Shirou Tokisada, as he told me, Archer and Berserker," stated Jeanne as she addressed everyone at the table. The majority were the Black Faction, save for Sisigou, Saber of Red and Berserker of Red, who were leaning against the wall behind the Ruler class Servant. Jack was also seated there, at the behest of Rider of Black and by his own insistence as a representative of the homunculi. The remaining Servants of Black stood behind their respective Masters.

"That is a silly wish," scoffed the magus after getting a hold of himself.

"Shut your trap, fatty!" scorned out Saber of Red, startling him, "The whole point of the Grail is fulfilling dumb wishes like that."

"Heh, I like this kid," snickered the other Saber.

"It's impossible!" his Master retorted as he slammed the table.

"Will you stop making a fool of yourself Gordes..." muttered Celenike as she rubbed her forehead.

"Is it truly impossible? What if this Shirou person has it already figured out?" asked the homunculus.

"If he does have a way for the Grail to do it, then it will make it happen," replied the Ruler Servant.

"You have to understand, at its core, the Greater Grail is just a huge accumulation of magical energy," Fiore summed up, "It bypasses theory and process and instantly provides the result."

"So the problem would be if he actually knows of a way to make it happen," realized Caules.

"The problem, is not that he has a plan for it," Saber of Black spoke up again, "The problem is: Would it cause a disaster when it happens?"

"Hmm? What do you mean by that, Saber?" asked Roche curiously.

"Suppose someone wanted to become the greatest magus in the world," spoke up Sisigou, "His idea to realize it is the stupidly kill every other magus alive. Would the Grail do that for him?"

"What?" exclaimed Gordes.

"Basically, yes," confirmed Jeanne.

"That's nonsense! Impossible!" protested the rotund magus, "Who would allow that?"

"Amakusa Shirou has the Grail now," voiced out Rider, "I doubt anyone up there could tell him otherwise."

"Then, what we need to do is to come up with a plan to put a stop to it," said Fiore before turning to Archer and nodding. The Servant of the Bow stepped up to the table and laid out a map of the country. "We are here. The Hanging Gardens is here and is heading out of the country," she stated as she placed two different counters, "Considering the distance alone, catching up is not an issue."

"We could go after them by plane," suggested Caules as he placed another counter, presumably at the nearest airport.

"Unfortunately, they still have an Archer," countered Sisigou, causing the boy to groan in frustration.

"From what I can tell, Archer of Red can produce sentient bombs that she could order around," informed Archer of Black, "I have no problem countering that, but I do not know if she has any other tricks. Then, there are the other Servants to consider. Their Rider is capable of summoning a dragon."

"Not to mention that the Gardens have winged protectors made of bone," added Rider of Black, "As cute as they are, they can easily swarm a plane and overwhelm with numbers alone."

"..._Cute_?" wondered everyone else.

"The bone summons will be easily handled. Between Berserker-" and paused as Assassin suddenly materialized one of his guns. "-Assassin and myself, we can make short work of those as well as anything their Archer could summon at us," stated Archer as he glanced over to the armored Servant, who made no reply. "Our Rider will handle their Rider," he continued as he stared at the map, "I presume you are quite fast with that wyvern of yours, Rider?"

"Yes. Minerva and I shall run circles around them," she replied confidently.

"And that leaves us with getting the Sabers onto the Gardens to confront whoever is not occupied," he summed up, "Meaning, the Casters and Assassin of Red."

"Eh~, you guys seem to have it handled and you still want us to help?" questioned Saber of Red haughtily, "You seem to be asking for a lot."

"In case of an emergency, it is best you follow, Saber," he replied seriously, "Depending on how Archer of Red decides to act, she may use something unexpected. I am not so foolish to think that she only uses sentient bombs. That being said..." He then placed several other tokens on the map, saying, "We will need more planes, both for screening our approach and to further confuse the enemy Servants."

"Quite detailed for such a short time," commented Sisigou, pushing himself off the wall, "Will it work?"

"No plan survives contact with the enemy," the Servant quoted unintentionally, "In spite of that, I won many of my battles. I am sure we will win this one."

"With your help, we will have the advantage of numbers," added Fiore, "Surely you can see it too."

"Well, I do agree that we should stop Amakusa Shirou," he responded, "We can't really do anything until then either. Any objections?"

"Tch... I want your Saber's head," his Servant announced with a hint of anger.

"Hah, bring it then," said Servant taunted as he opened his arms wide as to invite the challenge.

"Enough."

Though her voice wasn't that loud, Fiore's voice still had the authority of a leader. "The Greater Grail is in the hands of a person that may or may not have a disastrous plan to save humanity," she said, repeating what was discussed before, "We cannot afford to kill each other at this moment. Please, enough is enough."

"Tch, fine. At least this will piss them off, especially the poisonous hag," Saber of Red grumbled as she relented.

"Huh, right," her Master muttered in amusement.

"Then, can I take it that you both agree to join forces?" asked the wheelchair-bound magus as she was brought over by her brother.

"Temporarily, until we deal with him," he affirmed, "If you wish, I am willing to use a Self-Geas scroll as well."

"We don't need to go that far," she told him as she extended her hand to shake, "Ï trust you."

"Oh, it's a deal then," he stated as he reached out and shook her hand.

**Commentary:-**

**Welcome back to the next chapter of Doubtful Origin. I hope you are well, dear readers, for we live in troubling times. Thus, I hope this new chapter will lift thy spirits. The battle is over for now. All fights are being concluded and planning shall begin anew. The remainder of the Black Faction made their way to the castle for recovery, with Ruler and Berserker of Red following suit... with Saber of Red and her Master close behind them. After taking good care of Lancer of Black and securing Darnic, the betrayer of the Black Faction joins in with the rest of the Red Faction to discuss their own plans for the War. After that, the Black Faction sits down at the table to discuss the turn of events.**

**Alright, that's a wrap. ****If you're able to, please leave a comment or a review after reading, would you kindly?**


	11. Muster For Battle

**I do not own Fate/Apocrypha nor any other Servants depicted here.**

Muster For Battle

Soft friction of rubber against metal echoed through the empty hall as Caules wheeled his sister back to her room. Not a word was spoken between them. She let out a tired sigh.

"Hmm? Is something wrong, sister?" he asked as he stopped wheeling the chair.

"Huh? No, it's nothing. I'm just a little tired," she replied as she tried to assure him.

"Oh," he murmured as he continued to wheel her on. After a moment he commented, "You know... you led the talks very well today."

"Ah, that... yes, I did. Thank you, Caules," she said rather hesitantly.

"You do not sound too confident in yourself, Master."

The wheelchair halted as the siblings looked at her Servant, who had materialized in front of them.

"Huh, what do you mean, Archer?" she asked calmly.

"When I mentioned having the homunculi pilot the planes," he recounted, "You looked a little unsure. Are you that concerned for their lives? I had thought that the lives of fake humans hold little real value among yourselves, merely fodder for the War."

"I just... do not want to simply waste resources," she tried to explain, "After what Jack did..."

"Previously, there did not seem to be any hesitation," he cut her off, "But now, there is. What had happened the previous night to make your mind so?"

She closed her eyes, unable to maintain eye contact with the lenses of his mask. "It isn't that simple to explain," she began, "After what Jack said..."

"To think a few words would be enough to sow doubt in yourself," her Servant said, sounding quite harsh to their ears, "Regardless of what you are feeling, you need to stand firm. The fate of the world depends on it. If you must throw the homunculi at it, do so. There will be time to grieve later when you survive."

She held on to the armrest quite tightly. Even if what her Servant said was true, how could she not feel for them? Especially after hearing what Jack said. The passion with which he championed the rights of his fellow homunculi touched her. Even if they had no souls to speak of, he talked as if they were real people. She could not help but to slowly think of them not as fodder or objects, but as living beings.

"Hey, you're supposed to be her Servant. Why are you arguing with her?" spoke up Caules as he protested the way the Servant was suddenly treating her. "She even won over Saber of Red's Master. How can you say-"

"That does not convince me," Archer replied calmly, "Will she have the nerve to do what must be done? If she is unable to steel her heart, then what right does she have to command me, who is willing to sacrifice all for a singular goal."

This brought silence.

"We are all that stands between the destruction of this world and its survival. If we cannot do what must be done, then all is lost," stated the military Servant, "Hold on to your bleeding heart all you want. I intend to succeed, even if it means finding another Master to work with."

"You will not harm her, Archer," growled out her brother as he stepped in front of the wheelchair and glared straight into the gleaming eye lenses.

"I had the impression that a magus was willing to do anything to further their craft," stated the military Servant, "Apparently, there are outliers to this method. I will not work with a Master who isn't willing to do anything in their power to win. And that includes taking a life. If you will not work with me, then I will find someone that will." With that, he materialized a combat knife.

"You-"

"Caules, enough."

Both of them sent their attention to her. Head bowed down, hand reaching out to grab her brother's wrist, she muttered, "He is not wrong, Caules."

"But, sister..."

"Remember what happened when we were young?" she asked as she raised her head, eyes unable to meet either of theirs. Her hand began to tighten its grip when she recalled that particular memory. Presumably, her brother did as well, since he fell to silence. Looking straight at her Servant, she said, "I cannot deny what you said. I do feel for them. I... cannot bear to send people to their deaths, even if it means success for us. Perhaps, if I didn't seem them as sentient beings, I would. But now..."

"I understand," the Servant replied, much to their surprise, "Such a mindset would be better suited for more peaceful times. At times like these, not so." Turning to look over to a shocked Caules, "I request transfer to him. He has a keen eye for things, untrained as he is. He is also more willing to make difficult decisions." Looking back to her, who nodded in agreement, he ended with, "That will be all, Master."

As he shifted to spirit form, Caules turned around and kneeled in front of her, holding on to the armrests and asked, "Are you sure about this, sister?"

She let out a sigh and nodded, saying, "I am sure, Caules. I'm sure."

* * *

"Hey, can you explain something, Ruler?"

Jeanne blinked and asked, "Saber of Red? Is there a problem?"

"How is Berserker still here?" asked the knight as she thumbed over to the armored Servant, "I thought he would've disappeared already since he betrayed them."

"To be honest, I don't know," muttered the Saint of Orléans as she glanced over to Berserker of Red, "I haven't discerned him too closely while on the Hanging Gardens. Perhaps now would be a good time to do so." Truth be told, she wanted to ask Jack about how he was doing after finding out Berserker of Black's death before they turned in for the night. She waited for the other Masters of Black to disperse before acting on her intentions. That was until she got sidetracked by Saber of Red. Even so, she too was a little curious about the green armored Servant.

She focussed her sight on the Servant of Madness and her eyes gleamed for a moment. A second later, she seemed to stumble back in shock. "What did I just see?" she muttered to herself. The Servant in question just ignored her and continued to seemingly stare blankly into space.

"Eh, what did you see Ruler?" asked the Servant of the Sword, surprised by the other Servant's reaction.

Ruler took in a deep breath as she steadied herself and stated, "Something unprecedented." She then turned to face the knight and said, "Unfortunately, I cannot tell you, as it is connected to his skills."

"That other Ruler called him the Doom Slayer," quipped up Saber of Black as he suddenly materialized, "Does it have to do with that?"

"What the hell are you doing here, bastard Saber?" the knight yelled.

"Making sure you guys aren't doing anything sneaky," he snarked back. Turning back to the Ruler class Servant, "So, know anyone calling themselves Doom Slayer?"

The saint shook her head and replied, "While there are a few who would call themselves a slayer of sorts, none have that as their namesake."

"Huh, that's a dead-end," he muttered as he shrugged. Glancing over at him, Saber of Black asked, "But he's still in this, right?"

Berserker let off something that sounded like a grunt and shifted to spirit mode. "I assure you, he is," affirmed Ruler with confidence.

"Alright, I'm out of questions," admitted the young Servant. He then waved at the others and dematerialized while he said, "Seeya around."

"Hmph, whatever," grumbled Saber of Red. Refocussing her efforts on Ruler, she asked cheekily, "Are you sure you can't tell us?"

The saint sighed.

* * *

"Absolutely stupid. How much more stupid can it get?" complained Gordes as he walked down the hall that morning, unable to get that revelation out of his head, "Salvation of mankind? Give me a break..." Suddenly, his foot was caught and he stumbled a bit.

"What in the world is..." his voice trailed off the moment he caught sight of what was in front of him.

The rest of the hall had cloth beds lining both sides, all of them filled with injured homunculi. A few of the medical ones were tending to them, as well as that annoying one called Jack. Even more surprising, he could spot Roche, of all people, at the far end of the hall standing in front of one of the beds.

"I'm sorry, excuse me," apologized Rider from behind him as she brushed against him as she brought a bucket of water to the appointed leader of the homunculi.

Grumbling, he stomped off after her. "Here it is, Jack," said Rider as she handed the bucket to him. He caught sight of Gordes and appealed, "Mr. Muzik, please do not stop us. Many of them are in grave condition."

Looking down at the gulping homunculus in the bed in front of him, he grunted out his disdain as he knelt down and felt her pulse. Then, he ordered, "Open your mouth." Peering inside and making some mental analysis, he stated, "Fools, her breathing system is underdeveloped. There are breathing aids in the magic supply cellar. Bring it, and quick!" He frowned as he looked at their surprised faces. "Hurry!" he shouted at them.

"Ah, yes, sir!" exclaimed Rider as she ran for the cellar.

"Why?" muttered Jack.

"What?" retorted the magus as he sent a glare at him.

"I thought you..." started the homunculus.

"Oh, piss off!" he shouted, his temper reaching a boiling point, "Chaos! Everything is in chaos! Servants! Greater Grail War! Greater Grail! It can all rot in hell! Salvation of mankind?! We wanted nothing so grand. All we wanted was a graceful fight of skilled magic and summoned Servants! Why! Why did it turn to this!?"

"If you want someone to blame, we should blame Amakusa Shirou," said Roche as he neared the two, a female homunculus walking next to him. One of the ground commanders for the homunculi.

"Huh, I suppose," the portly magus grumbled in agreement, "That bastard had a long time to plan this all out." Then, noting who was in front of him, he asked in a puzzled manner, "Roche, what are you doing here?"

"Offering them a chance to continue serving Yggdmillennia," the younger magus explained, "If they choose to accept, I will convert them into golems."

"Hmph, I suppose that's fine for those that are beyond repair," agreed Gordes, disgruntled and wanting to have a final say in this as his creations were his responsibility, "But I will check them first. If they really are beyond saving, do what you want."

"Thank you, Gordes," Roche replied happily as he spun on his heels and walked off without waiting for the commander.

"You are quite a surprising magus," she stated as she addressed them, "You're haughty and short-tempered. A catastrophe of a human."

"Who do you think you are talking to?" retorted the magus, his temper rising again. She dared to talk back at him?

"You are a decent alchemist at least," she ended.

"You... infuriating... guh," he grumbled, unsure of the praise, if it was genuine or not, "You could have worded that better."

"I doubt you would want to be compared to the Einzberns," she pointed out.

"Hmph, our family is not as grand. But we'll catch up," he stated as he looked away. His words were certainly not hollow. He would bring up his family name to be just as good as those German alchemists.

"Is that why you are willing to help?" interrupted Jack, presumably directing it at her.

"When you helped us, you gave us something new," she replied as she glanced over to him, "So, I believe this is the best choice for all of us. It will help continue that."

"Enough, we don't have time to waste," announced Gordes, having had enough of this chatter, "You there! Homunculus!" Several turned over to look at him. Realizing his mistake, he groaned, "Oh, damn it! You ought to have some simple names at least."

"Naming the child is the job of the parent," stated the commander.

"I know that!" he retorted, his temper rising yet again, "I should've added something to make you unconditionally obedient."

"I am sure you have the skill to do that too," she simply said.

"Stop sounding so condescending!" he roared. He simply cannot fathom why this one is constantly talking back at him.

_The nerve_! _This simply has to be Jack's fault. I'm sure of it_!

* * *

"There. The transfer is complete," declared Ruler softly. Archer's Seals were now behind Caules' hand.

"Thank you, Ruler," acknowledged Fiore quietly as she stared at the back of her own hand, devoid of the Seals.

"With time to spare as well," stated the satisfied Servant as the other Master's started filing into the meeting room. As they took their seats, the Servant of the Bow stated, "Before finalizing our alliance with Saber of Red and her..."

"Oi, call me that again and I'll take your head!"

"...Master, we were discussing our plan to board the Hanging Gardens," he continued, ignoring the childish outburst, "As we have discussed yesterday, we will reach the Gardens via plane. Berserker, Assassin and I will provide covering fire against any summons sent against us. Rider and her wyvern will distract and hopefully defeat Rider of Red, if possible."

"If I may, I have something to add, Archer," interjected Ruler, raising her hand.

"Yes, Ruler?" he asked, allowing her to do so.

"The Hanging Gardens also have magical defenses as well as the flying summons," she informed them.

"That does pose a problem," he agreed. Then, he said, "Then, we shall requisition more planes for distraction."

"We do not have enough resources to get more planes, Archer," Fiore told him, "Even if we could, this is still a waste of homunculi and resources."

"What else could we use except more planes?" he asked, wondering why she was still opposed to this. She was no longer his Master. Such insubordination is foolish.

"The planes are at an airfield within driving distance from here. Commercial airplanes used by civilians," explained Caules with a frown, "Military planes during a secret War is not feasible unless you can summon some yourself as part of your Noble Phantasm."

"Tch, most unfortunate," the Servant grunted. They had enough covering fire but nothing to negate whatever magical defenses on the floating fortress. Most vexing.

A flash of light drew his eyes to Berserker. He was holding a huge blocky weapon in both hands that had a glowing green cylinder in the middle.

"That..." muttered Ruler as she trailed off.

"That's a big fucking gun you have there. Are you showing off or something?" asked Saber of Black in a joking manner.

"Why is he showing that? This doesn't make any sense," complained Gordes, with Celenike agreeing.

"Does he think he could counter Assassin's defenses with that?" asked Sisigou with curiosity

"...Looks kinda cool," Saber of Red admitted begrudgingly.

"Hmph, forgive me if I don't believe that you can just counter the defenses of a fortress with just one gun," stated Archer with certainty.

"...Does it satisfy your concerns when I say it could?" queried Ruler as she got over her silence. Berserker dismissed the giant gun and gave her a thumbs-up before crossing his arms in front.

"Hmph," he sounded and addressed the table, "If it doesn't work, then I shall use my Noble Phantasm to neutralize it."

"Are you sure?" asked Caules.

"Affirmative, Master," confirmed the Servant. It irked him that he had this kind of Noble Phantasm... but, he was willing to make full use of it if it resulted in a victory for his side.

"Aside from that, we could use golems instead of homunculi," suggested Roche, "They understand orders and will execute them well."

"That would be a good thing, Roche," replied Fiore quickly.

"...Very well," muttered Archer. Re-addressing the assembled Masters, "The strategy is finalized." Turning to his new Master, "How soon can we gain control of the planes, Master?"

"Give us one day, Archer," the young magus said firmly.

Archer nodded and declared, "Thank you, Master. Everyone, the meeting is adjourned."

* * *

Night had fallen and everyone had retired to their rooms, save for a few homunculi maids that were patrolling the halls only guided by candlelight. One such maid was walking down the carpeted hall when she heard some knocking sounds. Puzzled as well as curious, she diverted from her route and sought out the origin of the sounds. Very slowly, as she passed by one of the doors that led to an unused room, the door opened with a slight creak. She stopped and turned around, catching sight of the white door. She neared the entrance of the room and held up the candle stand. Instead of illuminating the doorway, she was faced with pitch-black darkness. And before she could scream out at the top of her lungs, a large pink tentacle lunged out and wrapped itself around her head, dragging her body into the room. A second tentacle swiped the candle and retreated, putting out the wick before the door closed without a sound.

"How intriguing," commented Miraak as a cultist priest dragged the homunculus maid to the center of the room, her neck already broken, "What use would you have for dead bodies, Caster?" The priest laid out the body next to three others. Two males and a female. They were also in a similar state. One male was a wandering guard while the female was escorting the other male back to the homunculi quarters to rest and recover.

"Hmm, you see, unlike my former Master, who messed around with golems of earth and metal," stated Caster of Black as he waved a gleaming, monochrome hand over the four homunculi bodies, "I experimented with flesh. It is fluid. It can be changed, reshaped and remade."

The bodies began to shudder and vibrate as his unnatural power coursed through them.

"It can be made immortal. Undying."

They began to jerk around and bend into impossible angles.

"I can also bring back the dead."

The four bodies rose to their feet and opened their eyes. A flash of blackness gave way to four pairs of ordinary eyes.

"And now, the remaining Servants will have to be faced with a most difficult choice," declared Caster softly as the four kneeled down to him in seeming reverence.

"Ah, I believe I understand your reasons why," exclaimed the other magic-user. Then, the four lay down on the floor, unmoving.

"Indeed," chuckled the old man with a malicious grin, "Come, let us return. These four will not remember our coming and will go on with their business when they awake. We had best be off until then."

**Commentary:-**

**Welcome back to the next chapter of Doubtful Origin. I hope you are well, dear readers, for we live in troubling times. Thus, I hope this new chapter will lift thy spirits. This chapter... has a whole lot of talking and planning. Yes, there is a lack of fighting but I hope the interactions here cover up most of it. We still have one more day before the planes are ready, so expect more of the same until then. Not to mention I doubt there is much to do in the Hanging Gardens so most of the scenes will be earthbound. Archer now becoming Caules's Servant. More questions popping up surrounding Berserker of Red. And finally, Caster of Black, the Ancestor, making devious preparations. What sort of choice is he going to present to those who would try to stop Amakusa Shirou Tokisada? Soon. Very soon.**

**But for now... ****If you're able to, please leave a comment or a review after reading, would you kindly?**


	12. To The Skies

**I do not own Fate/Apocrypha nor any other Servants depicted here.**

To The Skies

"What a lovely day," said Rider as she and Jack walked down the path to the village. Out of her armor, she was wearing a simple red dress with green highlights and a pair of ordinary sandals.

"I guess..." the homunculus muttered rather haltingly. Truth be told, he didn't really want to have a 'day off' as it was. All the other injured homunculi were stable and on the way to recovery. The few that were beyond repair were taken in by Sir Roche. Even so, he still wanted to observe the preparations that were going on to assault the Hanging Gardens.

"Are you alright, Jack?"

Her question jolted him out of his thoughts. Then, he finally noticed that they had already reached the village. "Erm... sorry, I wasn't really paying attention," he admitted apologetically.

"In that case, I'll reword it. Is something wrong, Jack?" she asked with concern, falling in step with him.

He remained silent for a moment as they walked down the road. "I guess... I wanted to take part in the preparations," he admitted after a while, "You know Berserker was teaching how to fight. He was preparing me for this, wasn't he?"

"Maybe. I cannot claim to know what he was thinking when he did that," she replied with a smile as she watched a pair of laughing kids run past them, "For all I know, he was just giving you something for self-defense."

"Maybe, but I can't help but feel I should do something more," he confessed with a slight frown, raising his hands to stare at them, "I want to do something more. I should use this strength that was given to me to do more." He clenched them into fists and said with determination, "I want to join the assault."

She suddenly grabbed his shoulder and spun him around to face her. Placing both hands on his shoulders, she stared at him for a moment before asking, "Are you sure about this?"

He couldn't meet her eyes when she did that. What little time he spent with Berserker and Rider, he got a fair sense of what drove them. He still remembered what they said. Change. Family. He wanted to strive to do something that did both. He had already changed the fate of the Yggdmillenia homunculi. They became his family. And now... a chance to do more?

"Yes, I am," he replied as he returned to meet her eyes.

Rider let loose a sigh while closing hers. "Not too much of a surprise... still," she muttered as she reopened them and released her hold on his shoulders, "I think you've been around heroes a bit too much."

"Saving the world is what they do, don't they?" he asked back with a slight twitch of the lips.

"I suppose," she replied with amusement as she turned around, only to catch sight of something unexpected. "Well, what's going on here?" she exclaimed as she walked into the shop. Puzzled, Jack walked in after her and was just as surprised to find Saber of Red with various dishes in front of her, the food mostly polished off already.

* * *

Her eyes fluttered open. Her body felt stiff and her head felt heavy and leaden. Slowly, she sat up and cradled her head in her hand.

"Oh, you're awake?" someone called out. Somehow, the voice sounded really familiar.

Blinking away the sleep, she looked to where the voice was and caught sight of Sisigou sitting at a table. She quickly noted that she was sitting on a mattress and around her were her fellow Masters. They were in a large room, probably large enough to be a ballroom. The large paned windows were draped with fancy curtains. Having satisfied her middling curiosity, she focused on the magus in question, "What? Kairi? Wh-where are we?"

"Oh, we're at the Yggdmillenia Castle," he replied in a relaxed manner, "Ï admit, they are rather generous with being hosts."

"Huh? That's strange. I thought we're rival factions," sounded a man behind her. Turning around to find Berzinsky continuing his summarising, "I suppose we have you to thank for our... accommodations?"

Another horrified exclamation, she turned to her left and found the younger Pentel brother consoling the older.

"Just what is the meaning of this, necromancer!?" shouted von Sembren with all the bile he could muster, who had been lying in the mattress next to hers.

Said freelancer smirked and told them, "Alright, get on your feet. I'll call over some chairs and some food and drink. There's going to be a lot to cover."

She nodded slowly, slowing taking in the new information.

_What in the world happened to the Red Faction?_

* * *

"Hmm, what are you two doing here?" Saber of Red muttered in between bites. She caught sight of Jack and Rider and kept an eye on them as they made their way to the table and sat down.

"Oh, nothing. We were just passing by," replied the wyvern knight with a gentle smile.

"Why are we here though?" the homunculus asked the Servant, the curiosity evident on his face.

"I was hoping to get a second opinion," she said as she gestured to the knight. Turning to said Servant, she explained, "Jack wants to join the assault on the fortress. As much as I want to keep him safe, he insists on it. I was wondering what your thoughts were."

"Huh, it's his life. He can do what he wants with it," the knight Servant remarked as she gobbled down the rest of her food, "If he wants to throw it away, let him." Wasn't her problem.

"I won't be throwing it away. I have trained for this," protested Jack, keeping his voice level as to not draw too much attention, "I can definitely make do with what Berserker has given me to save the world."

"Berserker? Berserker of Black, you mean," she muttered, wondering where this was going, "Your scrawny self wanting to save humanity is a joke itself."

"And you're not? Aren't you supposed to be a hero?" he retorted.

"Nope. I fight for my wish," she said truthfully, "It only just so happens I'll be saving humanity in the process. I don't really care what happens after that. They aren't really worth protecting at all."

"Oh? I happen to think people are worth saving," spoke out someone aloud.

"Tch, Saber of Black. What are you doing here?" she grumbled, noticing the Servant walking up behind Rider and Jack, his hands shoved into his pants pockets.

"Sightseeing, what else is there?" he snarked as he pulled a chair from another table and sat down, "Besides, you're wrong, daddy's girl. Humanity is worth saving."

"Will you shut up about that, you bastard?" she retorted angrily, the subject of her father riling her up, "What gives you the right to mention Father?"

"Eh? What are you gonna do, daddy's girl?" he asked nonchalantly as he leaned back and crossed his arms behind his head.

"Why I-" she growled as she got up, ready to throw a punch.

"Enough," stated Rider as she got up while glancing at the both of them, "You will not be bickering like little children."

"Who the hell are-ow-ow-ouch-wah?" she started but Rider immediately grabbed her ear in a vice grip and sat her down again.

"If you are going to be a child, you shall be treated like one," the Servant of the Mount stated sternly. Releasing her ear, the wyvern knight continued, "Now, do behave."

Saber of Red just rubbed her throbbing red ear with a scowl on her face. She was quite surprised that this scrawny knight had a strong grip on her.

Saber of Black snickered and said, "So... I guess you have daddy issues, huh?" Before she could retort, he continued as he leaned in, "You ain't alone on that one. Why... mine cut off my arm once. And when I got it back, I kicked his ass."

"Che," she sounded while averting her eyes and crossing her arms in front of her chest. "I led a revolt and killed him," she muttered softly. A well deserved revolt too. This is what Father got for not acknowledging him. She was better and she will prove it.

"Huh, this ain't a competition, you know," Saber of Black said as he got up and returned the chair to its proper place, "Oh well, I'm heading back. If anyone you wanna spar, I'm all up for it. Gotta keep sharp and all that." With that, he left the little eating place.

She glowered at his retreating form. Grunting, she got up and moved to leave as well. The place was starting to become stifling and she wanted out.

* * *

"How... troubling," muttered Cabik as he and his brother Deimlet stared at their tea.

"So annoying. To have lost our Servants in such a way." grumbled Rottweil. Staring at Sisigou, "I guess it falls to you to win this then, necromancer."

"Such disgrace," mumbled as von Sembren slammed his fist on the table angrily, "How in the world can I face the Clock Tower now?"

"More importantly, what do we do now?" stated Jean as she sipped her drink, "I presume we are being held here by the Black Faction?"

"Yeah, that's correct," confirmed Sisigou with a nod, "They might be persuaded to let you roam free with attendance but... I doubt it. Letting you all go in disgrace would probably be arranged after the War is over." Glancing over to the elder Pentel brother, he asked, "So... Berserker still doesn't have a Master. Are you interested in contracting him again."

The Gum brother shuddered slightly and said, "That first night... that dream... I think I will have to refuse."

"Hmm? You mean the Servant's past?" questioned the Master of Saber, "Strange. Shouldn't you get to know your Servant through the dreams?"

He seemed to shiver and rubbed his arms as if the temperature had dropped, shaking his head. Cabik sighed and muttered, "And he's supposed to be the older one."

The doors to the grand ballroom opened, drawing everyone's attention to it. Sisigou grunted a little as Celenike and Sagara walked through them.

"I take it out guests are satisfied with their accommodations?" the Master of Rider asked.

"Things could always be better," proclaimed Rottweil with faux joy, "Proper beds would be a start. Or maybe our own rooms?"

"Or how about a room of your own... in the dungeons. I believe there is plenty of room there," replied Celenike with some eagerness to her voice.

"On second thought, here is just fine," backpedaled the Silver Lizard.

"A pity," she stated with seeping disappointment. Turning to the necromancer, she informed, "Arrangements have been made. We start tonight."

"Oh! That's good news indeed," he said eagerly. Giving a mock salute to the others, he declared as he got to his feet, "Wish me luck."

"Considering you still have your Servant, I doubt you need it," snarked the Gale Wheel.

"I always welcome more," he replied with a grin as he followed the other two Masters out.

* * *

Jack trudged up the dirt road heading towards the castle, Rider walking by his side. However, he wasn't at ease. "Am I really doing the right thing?" he wondered as he made his way back, "To help in saving humanity... Which Saber is right? Rider of Black would save them. Would Berserker of Black?"

"Welcome back," greeted someone, jolting him out of his thoughts. Ruler stood by the doors with an angelic smile.

"Ah, hello Ruler," he returned the greeting while Rider just waved. He considered his next words and then said, "I want to join the assault."

"Eh? Eh!?" she exclaimed and then marched over to him and grasped his shoulders, "What are you talking about? This is a very dangerous mission. You who called yourself the representative of the homunculi want to put yourself in danger?"

"Because I feel like I could do more," he replied calmly, "Ï should do more. There has to be more that I could do. I want to show that even a homunculus like me could reach just as far as a normal human."

She gave him a sad look. "It seems that Berserker of Black's words has come true," she muttered as she shook her head, releasing his shoulders, "He did say you would not be able to stay away from the fight, after all."

"Sorry," he apologized, suddenly feeling a little remorse creeping into his heart after looking at her crestfallen face.

"No, do not apologize. This is simply what your heart is telling you to do," she stated as she placed a hand to his chest, over his heart, her smile now not as radiant as before. "Now, I believe both Sabers are sparring in the castle courtyard," she continued as she stepped away from his, her hands falling beside her.

"Huh? How did you..." he asked in surprise.

"Saber of Black asked me to relay that to you before he began," she simply stated.

"Come, let's go and see what he wants," urged Rider as she tugged him along. He glanced back at Rider for a moment, watching her look to the setting sun, before he turned his head around to make sure he doesn't stumble all over the place.

The clear crash of metal could be heard getting louder as they neared the courtyard. Saber of Red, in full armor, was exchanging strikes with Saber of Black, who was dashing in and out with wide swings of his sword. The red knight favored heavy blows and heavy swings. The black swordsman had speed, making use of short dashes to weave in and out of Saber of Red's attacks.

"If you are still intending to join the assault, maybe a spar will do you good," stated the wyvern knight.

He stood there silently, still watching the spar. Then, he muttered, "Alright."

He clenched his fists and curled his arms up. His skin turned black, his veins ran white, and the nanomachines spread all over his body save his neck and head. He then dashed forward, getting in between the Sabers, their swords crashing against his hardened body.

"Oh, the kid's out to play," taunted Saber of Black, his joking manner very clear, "Nice. Show me what you got."

* * *

"So, this is it."

The six Masters of the Black Faction stood outside the castle entrance with Jack and Ruler as well as several attending homunculi. Fiore and Caules had decided to represent the Faction, with the others agreeing.

"Take care of yourself and the others, Uncle Gordes. I leave this place to you," the young girl wished on him.

"Yes..." he answered as he coughed a little, "So, you know... come back alive."

"Yes, I promise," she said with a smile. And then, "Please take care of them too."

"Hmph, they are already quite capable of taking care of themselves," he replied.

"Do not worry," the female commander explained, "He may behave like this, but he truly does care."

"Now why is this one speaking out of line?" muttered Celenike.

"Be silent," retorted Gordes, "I will handle that later."

"Are you coming back?" she asked Jack, calmly ignoring the Icecolle heiress.

"I cannot promise such a thing. It is ultimately a very dangerous mission," the representative admitted.

"Is that so... in that case, thank you for all you have done for us," she said as she stretched out her hand.

"Ah," he sounded in affirmation as he took her hand and shook it.

"I wish victory upon you," said the former.

"Thank you, Toole," replied the latter.

Then, they parted and the assault team talked down the road, where a car driven by a golem was awaiting them. Soon after, they were speeding down the road, heading straight to the airport. When they reached there, it was deserted. Nobody outside to greet them at the entrance. Entering the departure hall, one could see the entire place devoid of people. As they went in further, slowly, the other Servants materialized. Rider of Black. Saber of Black. Archer of Black. Berserker of Red. Assassin of Black. They came closer to the double sliding doors that led outside. On the tarmac, the entire staff had been swapped out with non-combat golems.

"Everyone knows their part?" spoke up Caules. Getting affirmation all around, he continued, "My sister and I will be following behind in a smaller plane. Good luck everyone."

As the entire group stepped on the tarmac, Archer said, "Abandon hope, ye who enter here. After this point, there will be no turning back. It is either victory or nothing at all."

"As emo as that sounded, you're right," commented Saber nonchalantly, "It's all or nothing from here on out. Time to rock."

"My sword is hungry./ They will drown in blade and gun./ There is not enough."

"I will bring victory. This is for humanity," declared Rider.

Berserker materialized his combat shotgun and cocked it.

With each their own declaration, they split off. To each their own plane except Rider, who called out, "Minerva!"

A loud roar echoed through the night sky and her mighty wyvern swooped low. She jumped into its saddle neatly and flew up, on the currents, riding high. It was time to take the battle to the Gardens.

* * *

Caster of Black stood at the edge of the tail end of the Gardens. All has been done as he predicted. The Servants coming to the Gardens. The Masters hiding in the castle.

Pink flesh suddenly began growing all around his feet, a small circle. As it slowly rose up and enveloped him, he smirked. The mound of flesh enveloped him and slowly dragged him into a circle of endless night. When it was done, it disappeared, without a trace. It was time to reap what was sown all those days before.

**Commentary:-**

**Welcome back to the next chapter of Doubtful Origin. I hope you are well, dear readers, for we live in troubling times. Thus, I hope this new chapter will lift thy spirits. Another rest day before the action happens. We also see the former Red Faction masters as they wake up, the poison finally leaving their system. The day sets, the Servants get on their planes, Caules and Fiore get in a smaller one, and everything seems to be going according to Caster of Black's plans.**

**Another thing. I've recently been watching a lot of clips about the v-tubers from Hololive Japan. It's lovely. The more I watched, I started to wonder. What if they are characters in Dungeons and Dragons? Some of them can be converted easily. Some, a bit more difficult. So, I did. I pretty much converted many of the Hololive Japan v-tubers into D&D versions. Some scary. Some cool. Some a bit of both. Then, I started to wonder if I can use those characters in a story. Hmmm...**

**But for now... ****If you're able to, please leave a comment or a review after reading, would you kindly?**


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